My Hidden Love
by Dawning Angel
Summary: Kisshu corners Ichigo and she reveals she loves him over Aoyama, but what happens when she has to hide her new boyfriend from her parents, the rest of the Mew Mews, and Aoyama? Lots of Kisshu X Ichigo, slight seriousness, humour and jealousy for Kish!
1. Chapter 1

**Hiya! This is my first Kisshu x Ichigo fanfic, so forgive me if it's not great. All thoughts are in italics, and it's 3rd person here, but may change in l8r chapters. Oh, and I (sadly) don't own any of the characters, or Tokyo Mew Mew. T-T Anyway, here's the first chapter! Enjoy… ;-)**

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Chapter 1

Ichigo walked home in a daze. She and Aoyama-kun had just finished their date, and she was in high spirits. In fact, Ichigo was so distracted; she forgot to look where she was going…And also didn't notice that Kisshu was following her from above.

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Ichigo blinked, disoriented, as she found herself in a dead-end street. _Ah. Oops. Guess I should've paid more attention to where I was going!_ She thought sheepishly. Ichigo turned around, intending to retrace her steps and go home, when she spotted Kisshu floating a few inches above a brick wall. Without thinking she reached for her pendant to transform into Mew Ichigo.

"Wait." Kisshu's voice drifted down to her. Ichigo paused, not quite sure why. Maybe it was because of his tone – it sounded serious, not like the usual teasing one. His face matched his voice, and she put the pendant away, puzzled at his unusual behaviour.

"What do you want, Kisshu?" She asked warily.

"I've come to take you with me."

"Eeeh?!" _That _was out of the blue. Sure he'd hinted, but sheesh!

Kisshu sighed. "Look, you can either come with me, or get killed here."

Ichigo tensed up, taking it as a threat. Unfortunately for Kisshu, she had been attacked too many times by him to realise it for what it was -­­­ a warning. Ichigo replied with a ferocity that surprised Kisshu. "I am not going with you. So you can take your offer and-"

She was cut off as he looked at her, disappointment clear on his angular features.

He had thought she would understand, but she didn't. So he had to get her to see the truth. Kisshu jumped down from the wall and landed gracefully, taking Ichigo's hand in his, ignoring her protesting gasp. "Why don't you see?" He murmured. "Why can't you believe this is the only way?" Ichigo searched his face, hoping to find a weakness, a chance of escape, but saw only tenderness and... Love? Impossible. She twisted this way and that, trying to break Kisshu's hold on her.

"No." He snapped; face transforming into the cruel mask once again. "I'm not letting you leave until you show me."

A small growl escaped Ichigo's mouth. "Show you _what_?"

"Show me you're listening to a damn thing I'm saying!" He seemed irritated. Ichigo thought if he had not the hold on her hand, he would've been pacing. He stared into her eyes with a strangely intense expression. Ichigo wanted to look away, to break the contact, but seemed to be locked in place.

"I'm _in love_ with you." He shook his head, sending the emerald bangs flying.

"I can protect you, keep you from harm. I can take you far away from here, to a place where we don't have to fight, where we can just be free." He smiled invitingly, drawing her in.

For Ichigo, he was painting a beautiful picture…But she couldn't. She had to protect the Earth, protect her friends. Ichigo looked away. "But we have to fight." She whispered. "What you're doing, hurting innocent people…I can't…Let you…" She trailed off, uncertain of how to finish.

Kisshu felt his heart beat faster, and acted on instinct. He stepped closer; brushing his free hand across her cheek and turning her face back round to his.

"You can't let me do what?" He said, so softly. He fought for his people, for the ones he loved. Was that such a crime?

Ichigo's eyes, which had been looking to the side, now flicked up to meet Kisshu's, and she lost all thought. His eyes, so full of love, were almost hypnotic…Like flames dancing in a fire.

_But_ _flames can burn, and flames can hurt you._ A small voice told her. It sounded familiar somehow, yet not her own. But Ichigo didn't care. She couldn't. Not when she was being held so tenderly, so lovingly. _Someone else loves you too_, the voice reminded her.

That was it… her heart belonged to someone else. _Aoyama-kun! _Ichigo's free hand flew to still the ringing bell around her neck, a light blush rising to her cheeks. She smiled happily in spite of her situation and Kisshu's hold on her hand loosened ever so slightly, before tightening with a vice-like grip so without warning that it caused Ichigo to cry out.

Kisshu had just been bitterly disappointed. He had thought she had changed her mind. Kisshu thought she had chosen to be with him, wanted to belong to only him. But she preferred that human… that much was plain to see. And it stung his heart in a way that nothing else ever had. He wondered if she knew how she was hurting him._ I don't think so, _he thought, _she's too kind for that_. Perhaps someday he would return the favour, but now was not the time. _Time… Pain heals through time,_ he realised.

A new emotion entered his mind and heart, soothing the sharp pain into a dull throb. What was it? Hate? Desire? Maybe both had mixed to create something new, something more powerful.

Determination. Time and time again Ichigo refused him, but he would overcome anything she threw at him: Even death.

_Whoah!_ Kisshu mentally backtracked. _Am I really that far gone? Do I honestly love her enough to die for her?!_ The answer ran loud and clear through his whole mind, body and heart… An undeniable, unquestionable 'yes'. _It is as it is,_ He concluded. But although he had established to himself how far he would go for her, she still needed to be shown.

Ichigo had been caught between racks of guilt for forgetting Aoyama-kun, and getting lost in Kisshu's fiery eyes. She suddenly noticed he was no longer debating something, and was staring at her intently. Ichigo suddenly felt very nervous, as if she knew he was planning something. She felt the urge to run, but couldn't move.

Kisshu hesitated for the briefest moment, and then wrapped his arm around Ichigo's waist, pulling her into him, leant closer and pressed his lips to hers. He'd kissed her before, but this was different, this meant something – to both of them.

The moment their lips touched, Ichigo couldn't breathe, and her heart raced. Her mind was flooded with thoughts. _This is wrong. You love Aoyama. You can't fall in love with Kisshu…_ But as the kiss deepened, the flood slowed to a trickle, and finally bliss took over. It didn't matter about the world. Let it burn, for burn it would if she let go. Ichigo felt terrible things would happen if she turned away now. If Kisshu could honestly protect here from that, then she was his.

Kisshu had wanted this to happen for so long, it had become little more than an obsession, and the initial reason had been dimmed. But that reason had been brought to light, and now it surged through every muscle in his body. He loved her. He wanted her. He wanted to be the only one she'd ever need.

All too soon Ichigo broke away, and although Kisshu didn't pull her back into the embrace, he carried on kissing the side of her neck, enjoying the heat of her skin until she stepped back, red in the face. He licked his lips, as he could still taste a hint of strawberry, and smiled. Ichigo's cat ears and tail had come out, proving she was more similar to him than any human.

Ichigo cringed. The damn ears and tail. They always got in the way! She automatically stepped back and hid them until Kisshu reached over and moved her hand. "You don't have to hide from me," He said. "I love all of you, cat features too, kitten." Ichigo's tail twitched in delight at the new nickname, but her voice didn't seem to work. Kisshu's smile broadened into a grin while he brushed a stray hair out of her eyes. "The truth is always revealed somehow." He sighed. "People are going to find out about us." His voice sounded so harsh, Ichigo flinched. "There going to try and break us up. We won't let that happen. Not if... not if we really love each other." He paused, and sounded very uncertain. "Ichigo… You do love me… don't you?" If this was all some elaborate scheme, or she was only playing along, it would break his heart to far beyond repair.

Ichigo's own heart did a little flip at the hesitance in his voice. He sounded so helpless, so vulnerable…It was then she realised that she could not ever hurt him, for seeing him in pain would hurt her. "Kisshu," She murmured, finding her voice at last. "I love you. More than anything in this world, or any other." They smiled at each other, intertwining their fingers, and sat on the floor, staring up at the dark night; hiding their fears from one-another.

Ichigo tried with all her might not to think of Aoyama, and how badly she would be hurting him, when she knew he loved her very dearly.

Kisshu refused to think of how Deep Blue would react, and how he would plan to harm Ichigo to punish Kisshu.

Ichigo's eyes grew heavy, and she leant her head on Kisshu's strong shoulder. _This is how it's meant to be,_ he thought. _Ichigo safe in my arms._ He kissed her forehead gently and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of Ichigo's deep, steady breathing. Perhaps everything would work out okay. He sighed, and let his mind wander under the cover of the star-strewn midnight sky.

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**What did you think? I want to know if i should post the next chapter...So please review!**

**(BTW. First reviewer gets a cookie!...) :-) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the reviews, and since you called my bluff, ichigo-inugirl…. I intended to get a picture of a yummy cookie up on here, but it failed…So onto Chapter 2… **

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Ichigo woke in confusion to her alarm clock. She was in her room, but still dressed in her previous day clothes. _Huh? Why is that?_ She thought for a moment, before sitting bolt upright, and promptly banging her head on a shelf. _Ow… _It had all just come back to her, along with a throbbing pain in her head.

Getting lost, meeting Kisshu…But that didn't answer how she got back home. Ichigo decided it didn't matter, and peered over her duvet at the clock. _Crap! _It was late. Really late. She threw on her uniform, grabbed her schoolbag and ran out the door with a hurriedly yelled "Bye!" to her parents.

She ran to school, and got there just in time. Ichigo sighed as she sat down, only one thought on her mind. _What do I say to Aoyama?_

And as if her thoughts alone had summoned him, he walked through the door, composed as ever. Meanwhile, Ichigo was having a hard time thinking coherently. _Maybe if I say I'm really sorry?! Maybe I could just … umm…uh…_

Just as she was contemplating hiding under the desk so he wouldn't see her, the teacher shouted for everyone to sit down and get out their books. Ichigo sank into her chair with visible relief – he wouldn't have the chance to talk to her until lunch. She was sure she'd have the perfect way to let him down gently. So she hoped.

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Ichigo waved to her friends, and started on her way to Café Mew Mew, deciding it was the most annoyingly awkward day in history. She had hidden around corners, behind bins, and even up a tree to avoid Aoyama. She had been told to pay attention in three classes, and got some very weird looks when she asked her friends if Aoyama asked where she was, to say they didn't know.

Unsurprisingly, she hadn't managed to find the perfect solution – the one in which the Mew Mews would accept Kisshu as a good guy, her parents wouldn't care that she's going out with an alien, and the one where Aoyama-kun wouldn't be hurt. _Ugh, _She thought_. Trust me to fall in love with the evident bad guy. _Ichigo caught herself then. Was he really in love with her? Was she really in love with Kisshu? Yes, she had thought it when he had kissed her, and Ichigo couldn't deny that when Kisshu touched her skin, it felt like he left trails of fire, but there had to be more to it.

Ichigo ran through each of their encounters, trying to analyse each one. Each time they fought, he had toyed with her, already acting like she belonged with him. At these times she had felt guilty and hurt, because he kissing her made her feel as though she were cheating on Aoyama.

He had never really fought to kill her, even though it would look like that to any onlookers, just to distract her from the Chimera animal. But he was also trying to destroy the earth. Suddenly Ichigo broke out in a cold sweat. _What if he's just using me to get to the Mew Aqua?_ It was not impossible. In fact, it was so likely Ichigo was surprised she hadn't thought of it sooner. But then again, Ryou had said that she let her guard down far too often. Just as she thought of Ryou, he came in to view, showing some customers into the café. He saw her, frowned, and motioned to her with the universal gesture for 'Get a move on!'

So Ichigo walked through the door, deftly ducking to avoid Pudding, who was carrying plates in a rather unusual fashion. She was on a unicycle. Ichigo smiled at the complete normality of the controlled mayhem of the Café.

Zakuro, although really very kind, was scaring customers with her stoic expressions; Lettuce was scurrying from table to table taking down orders, always with a bright smile on her face; Ryou was doing his Jekyll-and-Hyde routine (Frowning at the walls, then smiling to the customers). Ichigo couldn't see Keiichiro, so she assumed he would be in the kitchen, baking delicious pastries as always; Mint was...being Mint, with a cup of tea, sitting in a quiet corner.

All the tension from Kisshu and Aoyama (although unintentional) soaked into the ground. _This is what I'm a part of. These are the people who care about me, and who I can tell anything. Even..._

Just then, Mint spotted Ichigo and called her over. "Where have you been?" She inquired. "Don't you know your shift started hours ago?"

_Maybe not._

Ichigo rolled her eyes, replying "Some of us have more important things to do then sipping tea y'know." _Like avoiding my soon to be ex-boyfriend. _

Since Mint couldn't read minds, she just pointed to the changing rooms. "Whatever. But hurry up and help out, would you?" With that, she went back to sipping her tea.

Ichigo was now filled disbelief that she had ever thought she could tell them. But now she couldn't tell them, she had to hide it from them.

A few minutes later, Ichigo too was taking orders, and soon forgot all about aliens, boyfriends and secrets altogether.

Until a few hours later when they were closing up, that is.

_It was Mint's fault,_ Ichigo decided. He was the one who had so unreasonably put two sensitive subjects way too close together.

"So Ichigo, how's Aoyama these days?" She said.

Ichigo panicked. Did he somehow already know? "Why? Did he say something?! What did he tell you?!" She was so frantic, by the end of the third question, she was on her feet, staring at Mint with wide eyes and an intense expression.

"Absolutely nothing." Mint replied, unruffled as ever. "You were late today, so I assumed you two were on a date, and lost track of time… or is there trouble in paradise?!" She smirked, amused at the insinuation. Mint and everyone else knew Ichigo and Aoyama were blissfully happy together. _But if that's the case, what's with Ichigo's reaction?_ Mint thought.

Because Ichigo, thinking about how to appear somewhat truthful, by in fact avoiding the truth, could only stutter half-formed answers. "Uh…nope, no! I just... um…."

At that moment, Ryou walked through the door, and Ichigo had never been more pleased to see him.

"Ok, guys. It's time to go. We know where the location of the next piece of the Aqua crystal, and we also know the aliens will be there at any minute." He pushed the hair back from his forehead with an unusually unsteady hand.

Something in Ichigo's mind clicked in to place, and before she knew what she was doing, she had yelled "We can't!"

Because Ichigo had just realised Kisshu would be there; and if they had to have the appearance of fighting to kill over which side got the Mew Aqua...It would be tricky at best; and damn near impossible at worst.

Everybody jumped at her outburst, and now stared at her incredulously.

_Aw, crap..._"I think we should... skip out this time."

Ryou looked at her as if she suggested free-falling off Tokyo Tower. "Why?" He simply asked. Now Ichigo was in real trouble. If she didn't tell them her situation with Kisshu, then they would have no reason to not go. _Even if I did, they might not believe me. Or __worse, be convinced he is using me…which might actually be true._ Ichigo shook her head. _Guess I've no other choice._ She opened her mouth to say the inconceivable...When the doorbell rang. She barely suppressed a grin. The expression 'Saved by the bell' had never seemed quite so appropriate.

Ryou pointed at her. "You." He said. "Stay right there."

Ichigo heard talking, but couldn't make out who the second voice belonged, although it sounded kinda familiar...

The grin turned into a half-smile half-guilty expression as the owner of the second voice headed straight towards her.

"Aoyama-kun!" She exclaimed. He smiled at her, and Ichigo could've sworn her heart beat just that much faster.

"Hey, Ichigo." He paused. "I was wondering if I could walk you home?"

Ichigo blushed furiously at the snickers and giggles emanating from the rest of the Mew Mews. "S-sure!"

She turned to get her bag to find Ryou holding it out to her. He leant closer very quickly and whispered "This doesn't get you out of explaining earlier." Once he had stepped back, Ichigo nodded once and turned to Aoyama, who was looking slightly suspiciously at Ryou. She hurriedly grabbed his arm, pulling him out the door while saying her goodbyes to the girls, avoiding Ryou's sharp look.

They walked in a contented silence, unbroken except for inconsequential pleasantries. Aoyama then made a rather strange, if not unwarranted observation. "Your manager, Shirogane-san, seems to be very familiar with you." He said it lightly, almost jokingly, but Ichigo still raised an eyebrow.

"You think there's something going on between me and Ryou Shirogane, my employer, who I think is the most cynical person I have ever met?"

He looked away, and said sheepishly. "When you put it like that, I guess not."

_Ha! He thought I liked Ryou! _Ichigo masked a grimace. _Although he wasn't actually that far off - I do like someone else._ She made up her mind as they slowed to a stop outside her house.

Ichigo, with a vague feeling of déjà vu, opened her mouth to tell Aoyama that she could not be his girlfriend anymore, when she found his lips upon hers, making it difficult to say anything at all.

Aoyama's kisses were comforting, warm, something she knew.

But it was like holding a candle to a raging inferno – the passion that Kisshu held could not be replicated.

As if he had heard her thoughts, Aoyama ended the embrace, bid her goodbye, and went on his way…a little forlornly, if truth be told.

Ichigo shook her head and made a vow to definitely, _definitely _tell him tomorrow. She ran past her dad, who wanted to know all about what she and Aoyama had 'gotten up to' as he put it.

She walked into her room and closing her door, put her back to the wood and let herself slide down onto the floor. It had been a long, long day.

Ichigo sighed and looked up – to find herself looking into a pair of golden eyes.

"Jesus, Kish!" She whispered, after standing up with a muffled scream. "Did you ever learn how to knock?"

He smiled, lighting up his face. "I teleported in, so there was no need to knock." He said, matching her tone.

Ichigo walked over to her bed and sat cross legged, leaning on the headboard_. He might as well know what an idiot I am._ "Kisshu, I'm sorry."

"What could you possibly need to apologise to me for, Ichigo?"

"I…" She hesitated. "I couldn't tell them. I couldn't tell any of them."

Kisshu sat next to her, stroking her hair comfortingly. "It's okay. We have time. The rest of our lives…if you want. I don't need anyone to know right now." He gently kissed her cheek.

In fact, Kisshu wanted the very opposite. He wanted the whole world to know that he loved her, especially that _human._

Kisshu had seen him kiss_ his_ Ichigo, and see her return the kiss. The sight made his blood boil with undiluted fury, and at that moment he had wanted nothing more than to run that weakling through with his dragon swords.

It felt so wrong, seeing Ichigo with people who could hurt her. He considered it his priority to protect her, regardless of what others thought.

And if she felt remorseful, then he had to be the one who reassured her.

Kisshu put his fingers under her chin, turning her until her eyes met his. "I love you. Never forget that." Unbidden the memory of her kissing that low-life rose to the front of his memory, and he muttered "Although that _boy_ is getting on my nerves." Ichigo recoiled. She knew he wouldn't forgive her for not telling them. "Fine." She said bitterly.

Kisshu rolled his eyes. Girls were so sensitive! He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the side of her neck. "Now I guess it's my turn to apologise."

Ichigo suppressed a shiver, and he smiled, offering "How about I take you out on a date?"

Ichigo turned to face him, an unusually vivid smirk on her features. "Perfect." She paused. "On one condition."

Kisshu pulled away, crestfallen. What would she ask?

"You have to wear human clothes."

He said just one word. "_Why_?!"

Ichigo answered by leaning forewords and surprising him with a quick kiss.

"Just trust me."

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**So, what about it? What did you like, or not like? Sorry if the plot got a bit off track, but this chapter refused to behave. Anyways, do you want the next one?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hiya!! Thanks again for the reviews and all those who favourited this story/ Author alerted me. It's really nice to know that people like what I write. **

**Now, an apology – I'm really, really sorry it took so long. I had to fight my way through masses of coursework before I was able to give this my undivided attention.****By the way, for this to make sense, you might just want to go over the end of chapter 2.**

**Without further rambling on my part, here is Chapter 3....**

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"Why? Just..._Why?_"

Ichigo patiently explained that if he went out the way he was, they would attract unwanted attention, and be found out. That**, **and she were mildly curious to see her _enemy_dressed like any other guy. _But then, he wouldn't be just some guy. He'd be mine._

"Fine." He paused, and then smiled. "We won't be needing clothes anyway."

He winked at her, and she began to question exactly what kind of a date someone went on without clothes.

"What – um – did you have in, uh, mind?" Ichigo squeaked, blushing furiously.

The grin widened, and his amber eyes sparkled.

"We're going swimming!" He exclaimed. Then Kisshu stared at her with wide eyes and an deceivingly innocent expression. "Now Ichigo, what did you think I was talking about?"

"N-Nothing." She looked at the floor, and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "…Much."

He suddenly came real close, and whispered "Ah...You thought I was thinking along the lines - ?" He threw his head back and laughed - so loudly Ichigo had to lean foreword clamp a hand over his mouth and remind him that her parents were only downstairs.

Kisshu, not displeased at how easily she could approach him, said "Maybe another time." Then he stole a kiss, and faster than the eye could see, stepped back and teleported away.

Ichigo froze in place, unable to decide whether he was joking…or not. She shook her head slowly, and walked over to her mirror; lightly tracing a finger over her lips, just to make sure the trails of fire he left weren't noticeable.

She lay down on the bed and smiled, already looking foreword to the next day.

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Kisshu teleported back to base, almost landing on top of Taruto, who had been shuffling a deck of cards, apparently setting out a game.

"Sheesh! Watch where you're stepping!" He exclaimed, leaping out of the way. He shook his head. "What are you so late, anyway?"

"What are you, my mother?" Kisshu snapped, sitting on an upturned rock with loosely folded legs.

"As if!" Taruto scoffed, following him like a puppy. "What were you doing in the humans' area?" He continued, persistent as ever.

Kisshu froze with wide eyes. "How d'you know that?" He asked suspiciously, trying to cover up his surprise. _What if he knows about me and Ichigo_? Even thinking about her seemed to leave him a little light-headed._ No_, he decided. The little punk would've accused him the second he came in if he knew exactly what had been going on.

Taruto shrugged, going back to his cards. "Easy. You weren't here, so you must've been there."

Kisshu relaxed. _He doesn't know_.

The sound of echoed footsteps resounded through the open space as Pai walked under a worn stone archway.

"What were you doing with the humans?" He inquired bluntly.

_Hello to you too._ Was Kisshu imagining it, or was his tone sharper than it needed to be?

Kisshu feigned boredom. "You both sound like a broken record." He faked a wide yawn, and lay down with his eyes closed. "Re-con mission."

He paused and opened one eye, peering over at Pai. "I thought you were all about getting information, eh?"

Pai nodded once brusquely.

Turning to Taruto, he said "Check the force-field around this dimension. We don't want the humans picking up any stray signals."

Taruto, not realising he was very subtly being gotten rid of, gathered up his deck of cards and left, muttering about how solitaire had too many complicated rules.

Pai then approached Kisshu, giving him such a cold look he sat up straight and had to stop him-self moving back a few paces.

"What?" Kisshu asked, genuinely bemused at the hostility.

"That," He hissed. "Was no re-con mission. You were with that girl – the leader of the Mew Mews. What are you playing at? Our people are suffering and you're wasting time fooling around with the enemy?!"

"How dare you," Kisshu growled, his hands curling into fists. "I know _just _what our people are going though. Stop telling me how to live my life."

"You didn't answer the question. What are you hiding?" Pai's eyes narrowed, as if connecting threads of thought and his face assumed a calculating look.

_Shit. Pai is smarter than Taruto. He's gonna figure it out. I've got to put him off the scent, before he puts two and two together. But how? _Kisshu thought franticly for a few seconds, even considering blackmail, before coming to a conclusion. _He can put two and two together, but I'll make it add up to five._

Kisshu rolled his eyes, replying "Oh, nothing escapes you, does it?"

"Stop speaking in riddles."

"If you _must_ know, I was trying to get rid of the Mew Mews from the inside." Kisshu sighed. "Now you know. I wanted to get in Deep Blue's good books." He held up his hands in a gesture of defeat. "So sue me. I thought if I tricked that silly girl into trusting me, it would be a piece of cake to get her alone and kill her. Without their leader, the Mew Mews would be thrown into disarray, and we could kill them at our leisure."

Kisshu hid the repulsion of what he was attempting - lying to one of his oldest friends, putting his love on the line, and risking his own life – behind a smile. It killed him inside, but if he pulled it off, it might just stop anyone hurting her.

Pai looked at him incredulously, and thought: _He's never cared about what Deep Blue's thought of him before, so why now and why so suddenly?_ _And he's not normally so ruthless._ There was something about Kisshu's look; it seemed so strained, as if he were… almost disgusted at his own plan. Pai was sure there was something he was still not saying, and resolved to keep an eye on Kisshu for a while. "I'll discuss this with Deep Blue." He said, ending the matter, and walked out of the circular room without another word.

Kisshu waited until the soft sound of footsteps had died away completely before hugging his knees to his chest and letting the façade drop. He cursed himself, and his lies.

His friend, and the person who would save his race, would be expecting him to murder the only girl who'd ever stolen his heart. _Stolen? _He thought. _Ha! I gave it to her. I gave it to her knowing full well it would put both of us in danger._He slammed his fist into a piece of granite and grimaced when he saw his bruised and bloody knuckles. There should have been pain, and there was; but it didn't come from his hand. No, it came from where his heart should be. A cold, terrified feeling. Further proof it was too late to turn back.

Kisshu sat in silence for hours, looking for the solutions that would make everything ok, just like Ichigo had.

He found none.

Kisshu's last thought before he fell into a restless sleep, and only decision was:

_I won't tell her. I swore to protect her…even from myself._

Ichigo was having one of her rare good days – everything seemed to be going right. She'd gotten to school early, done well in the surprise grammar test and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Even Ryou couldn't ruin the smile on her face. Although...

"Ichigo, tables 3, 4, and 5 need their receipts, and table 2 is still waiting for their order."

_Hmm. _She thought. _Annoying. But it can't be helped._ So she smiled and carried on.

Ichigo had been so cheerful, she hadn't realised the rest of the girls huddled in a corner, watching her.

"Look," Mint said. "She's only happy like that when something happens with Aoyama."

Pudding glanced up. "Yeah, so?

Mint looked around conspiratorially, then bent down and whispered "She hasn't been on a date with Aoyama in a week." Pudding and Lettuce merely stared blankly, but Zakuro nodded. "Meaning someone else has made her like this."

"Exactly. But who?"

They all thought hard, and drew blanks.

Pudding suddenly smiled. "I know!"

Everyone surrounded her, and in unison demanded "Who?!"

"Huh?"

"Who made Ichigo like that!?"

"Oh. I dunno _that_." Everyone sighed, disappointed. "But I do know how to get his name."

"How?"

"So easy." She started to walk toward Ichigo. "I'll just ask!"

Mint dived foreword, intending to clamp a hand over Pudding's mouth, but missed, colliding with the floor. _Aaahh_! _No! If we ask Ichigo straight off, she'll know were on to her!_

But it was too late to do anything, and they watched in horror as Pudding began to talk happily to Ichigo.

At first, Ichigo upheld her slightly manic smile, but suddenly went very pale, then bright red, and looked as if she were having a hard time speaking.

A few minutes later, Pudding returned, happy. "Easy. She's going out with Aoyama after work today."

"Eehhh??" Mint exclaimed. "No, that can't be right. Ichigo's hiding something."

"I d-don't think she is-" Began Lettuce, but was cut off.

"I know! We'll follow her, on her date!" Pudding and Lettuce nodded solemnly, but this time it was Zakuro who shook her head. "I can't. I have a photoshoot this evening." Mint nodded to her. "Of course."

Zakuro turned, heading for the changing room before hesitating. "A word to the wise - Don't overdo it."

Mint smiled, and it looked as if she'd understood, but Lettuce had the impression that Zakuro's warning had fallen on deaf ears.

"So," Mint declared. "Tonight, we follow Ichigo on her date!"

A voice interrupted her. "Hey, why don't you guys help Ichigo with some work?" Pudding, Lettuce and Mint all jumped, and turned around to find Ryou leaning against a wall, arms crossed. "I don't pay you to stand around gossiping all day."

Mint was the first to recover. "You don't pay us at all!" She replied smartly.

She left as Ryou shrugged, and the others followed her lead. She sneaked a look and winked at them each in turn. _Operation: Sneak date is go!_

**________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

**This chapter was more about Kisshu, really. Next chapter will be more interesting, I promise! Please review, ****and say if you want to see what happens next. I'll update much faster this time, 'Coz I've gotten most of that pesky coursework out the way. :-) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Hiya! Thank you for reading this far and I'm so, so, sorry I haven't updated in so long. Life's been kinda hectic for a while. This chapter might be confusing because events are seen from more than one character's POV but are happening simultaneously.**

**Please enjoy chapter 4...**

* * *

Ichigo escaped from Puddings' enquiries and, saying a quick bye to the girls ran to the changing room to grab her purse. She felt inside to check she still had her phone and keys when instead of cool metal or smooth plastic, her fingers encountered a small piece of folded paper. _Wha-?_

***************

"Bye!" Mint, Lettuce and Pudding all spoke together, waving off Ichigo. No sooner had she disappeared out of the cafe, Mint had motioned them to follow her to the door. "This is going to be difficult," Mint whispered behind her. "So we have to treat this with the utmost secrecy and seriousness, so everyone remain quie-"

"Yay! We get to be detectives!" Pudding burst out happily, already in a long detective's coat and bringing an overlarge magnifying glass out of her pocket.

"Shh!" Mint said, swiftly clamping a hand over her mouth. "There she is!" She pointed to Ichigo and... A guy? A guy that was most definitely not Masaya Aoyama.

She let go of Pudding and narrowed her eyes against the sunlight to get a better look.

"He could just be a friend..." Lettuce suggested quietly.

Mint snorted softly, and was proven right as the boy kissed Ichigo's hand in a fashion that would have been more suited to the 18th century.

"There, you see! It's official. Ichigo is cheating on Aoyama!" She clasped her hands together. "It is our duty to tell him and-?" Mint suddenly realised she was talking to herself as Lettuce and Pudding had already snuck past the main door and were tailing Ichigo and the punkish shook her head and raced after them.

"But that might take a while," Lettuce was saying exasperatingly to Pudding, who nodded.

"What am I missing?" She asked pointedly.

"We overheard Ichigo saying she needs to go home, and we don't know how long she's going to be, so things could get a little...complicated." Lettuce explained.

"No, it won't. We don't know who he is yet, and that's what we're going to find out!" Mint took the lead and marched after the two silhouetted figures, leaving Pudding and Lettuce little alternative but to folllow.

**************

Ichigo unfolded the paper with a tentative curiousness.

I'll be waiting for you after work, so look out for me. K.

_Oh. __**Oh. **_If he came there, and someone saw them together… she had no doubt in her mind that all hell would break loose. But she supposed it would have to, sooner or later.

Ichigo put the note back in her bag, shrugged on her coat and walked out of the café sighing. It was risky, Kisshu coming to pick her up there, but she smiled at seeing him that much sooner.

"Something funny?"

Ichigo spun round to where the voice had come from and saw a guy leaning casually against the café wall. He looked her age – a few years older maybe; wearing a long sleeved black top, unzipped about halfway down his chest, showing defined muscles, and dark combats. His hair was cut in a loose punk style, covering his eyes. It was also jade coloured.

"Do I know y-?" She began, then as the boy looked up; she saw his bright gold eyes and gasped. "Kisshu?!"

He raised an eyebrow. "I go through all the trouble of going human and you don't even recognise me?" Kisshu teased her, smiling lopsidedly.

"N-no... I mean…" Ichigo had some difficulty saying what she thought, because she rather surprisingly found herself staring at the exposed part of his chest.

Kisshu wrinkled his nose, taking her gawking the wrong way. "I look that bad, huh?"

"No!" Ichigo exclaimed. "You just look so… _different_."

Kisshu suddenly looked serious. "Well," he said quietly, "Some things don't change." He took her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it lightly. Ichigo suddenly felt breathless as she saw something in his eyes she had never seen before. But the moment passed and Kisshu winked cheekily. "Right?"

Ichigo felt her body relax. "Sure."

"Then let's get going before it gets late."

Ichigo nodded compliantly before pausing and smacking her forehead. "Ah, wait! I need to go home to pick up my swimming stuff."

Kisshu nodded and, taking her hand, lead the way. Ichigo found it slightly disconcerting how he didn't hesitate at any of the roads, as if he'd already memorised the route. When she commented on it, Kisshu laughed, replying with the cliché: keep you're friends close, and your enemies closer.

**************

"He knows the way to her house, meaning he's been there before – how presumptuous." Mint commented dryly on the two figures walking hand in hand to the door of Ichigo's house. Ichigo had met this person before, and the really strange thing was that Mint could've sworn she'd met him before too. She wasn't sure whether it was the way he walked, or perhaps it was that hair colour...

"Girls, if you're planning on paying a visit to Ichigo, you might want to knock on her door instead of hanging around on the street corner."

Lettuce, Pudding and Mint all turned around in unison and cringed when they saw the tall blond guy who had just spoken to them.

"Ryou-san, we were just about to..." Lettuce trailed off, looking at Mint for help.

"What are youdoing here?" Mint asked quickly, as he stared at something over her shoulder with wide eyes before answering.

"I was thinking about dropping in on Ichigo myself," He said, leaning on the brick wall. Only he knew the action was to draw attention away from the fact he was troubled by what he had seen – and to hide so what was troubling him wouldn't see him.

"So if we go all together, it will probably be less of a hassle for Ichigo, right?"

Mint was not expectingthat_._ It seemed that Operation: sneak date would have to be abandoned. _Only temporarily_, Mint thought firmly. She glanced at the two girls either side of her, one worried and one grinning shamelessly, then looked at her watch in what she hoped was a casual way before saying "My, how time flies. I must be getting home..." She bade goodbye to all of them and walked straight past Ryou without looking back.

Lettuce did the same, blushing slightly, while Pudding got out her inflatable ball and waved her goodbyes, leaving Ryou on his own, watching the sun trace out its steady path in the sky.

"Why are you doing his, Ichigo?" He muttered. "Why are you making this so difficult?"

**************

They arrived at her house without incident, and motioning to the sofa, Ichigo said "Take a seat; I'll be down in just a sec." She made her way to her room, leaving Kisshu glancing around the living room interestedly.

Kisshu was taking in random bits of Ichigo's life in photos with vivid interest. He had, of course, studied up on earth, the people and the places – but it was one thing to be told that humans lived for so long, and that they got married and had kids, and completely another to see it apply to someone he knew.

The story started on the mantelpiece with a woman that looked just like Ichigo, and a tall, dark haired man Kisshu supposed was her father. The woman was wearing a flowing white dress, and smiled happily into the camera. Kisshu looked around and the next picture he saw was Ichigo as a chubby toddler, and he smiled. She was cute.

Next was a class photo which could've been taken a few years ago, showing Ichigo grinning… although strangely not at the photographer. Kisshu's eyes travelled down the picture and he saw the human. The really annoying one.

Kisshu gritted his teeth slightly and turned away from that photo, making his way to the other end of the room where he had just spotted one last picture; this time it was Ichigo and her whole family standing behind a giant cake. A birthday maybe? But that's not what caught Kisshu's eyes. Ichigo was smiling. Not one that you pull at a bad joke, it was a really warm smile that felt like the sun shining on your face in summer. She looked so happy... Kisshu wanted her to keep smiling like that forever.

"Sorry for the wait!"

Kisshu turned to see Ichigo coming down the stairs, and he felt strangely guilty as if he'd been caught snooping.

"It's fine." He said, looking at Ichigo as she froze in place as the front door was opened by the women in the pictures that look startlingly like Ichigo.

"Mum! I didn't know you'd be back so early!" Ichigo exclaimed, manically waving her hands by her side.

_Huh? _Kisshu thought, confused by Ichigo's frenzied movements.

"Neither did I," She replied smiling. "I'm not really staying – just came to get the shopping list." She noticed Ichigo still wearing her coat. "Are you going out? You should be careful if you're going alone."

"No, I'm not going alone." Ichigo said, standing as if she could fade into the background if she only hoped for it hard enough.

_Umm...._ Kisshu finally understood she was motioning for him to go in the kitchen too late.

Ichigo mouthed _sorry_ to him as her mother turned to the living room, and saw Kisshu standing there. ""Oh! Hello there. I'm Sakura Momomiya, Ichigo's mother." She looked at Ichigo meaningfully.

"Uh...This is Kisshu...He's... We were...." Ichigo started panicking. _Nooo!! I can't say the truth! She wouldn't believe me even if I did! Should I say he's a friend? No, she's known my friends for years...Oh no, what am I going to do?! Breathe. Just say something. Mum's looking at me strangely...Say anything!_

"We were...uh... fudying for a sesting!" She stuttered._ Say something that makes sense! _"I-I mean testing for a study!" _Come on!! Think!_ "Um..."

Kisshu saw Ichigo panicking and thought quickly.

"I'm a transfer student – I just moved here and Ichigo was kind enough to help me study for a test that was coming up." Kisshu said smoothly. "At the library. Right, Ichigo?" She nodded, visibly relieved.

"Uh-huh." Sakura said, raising an eyebrow. "I hope I'll be able to meet you properly soon, Kisshu. Don't be out too late." She walked into the kitchen and came back waving the shopping list behind her, then picking up the cars keys, left the house with a breezy "See you later!"

Ichigo managed a quick "Bye!" and Kisshu put in a cheery "We won't."

As soon as the door shut Ichigo slumped into a chair, mentally exhausted from the attempt at lying. Kisshu smiled and sat on the arm of the chair. "Studying for a test?" he asked, unsuccessfully trying to stifle a laugh.

"First thing I could think of." Ichigo's muffled voice floated out from under her arms.

"It doesn't matter. Now, I really do think we should go, _before_ midnight."

Ichigo nodded and stood, reaching out for her bag, to find Kisshu holding it. "Thanks." She told him, smiling gratefully as she took the bag.

Kisshu felt his heart race as her fingers brushed his and was glad her back was turned when he felt a foolish grin lift the corners of his mouth. He shook his head and followed Ichigo out the door, closing it gently behind him.

Ichigo turned right, heading for the bus stop. There were a few pools in the area, she reasoned, and most busses came to that stop. She carried on musing about busses and trying to deduce which pool was the most likely when she heard Kisshu call out her name.

Ichigo spun around just fast enough to see Kisshu disappear right before her eyes, and a flash of... blonde hair? She shook her head, looking around wildly to see where he'd vanished to._ Someone's found out! They've...Oh god!?_ Ichigo thought irrationally.

"Kisshu?!" She yelled out.

"Yes?"

"Ach!" Ichigo jumped in surprise at the calm voice by her ear and the arms wrapped around her waist. "Don't do that to me!" She said weakly. "I thought something had happened to you." And she also had a strange sensation like they were being watched...

"Sorry." He let her go, a guilty smile on his face. He'd just wanted to have a little fun. "I thought you might want to know that you were going the wrong way. We're headed _that_ way."

"Huh?" Ichigo stared blankly at him. Kisshu was tilting his head to the left. But there was just a forest there... Or so she thought. Kisshu smiled at her bemused expression and for the second time that day, took her hand and led the way.

They walked into the forest, and Ichigo blinked rapidly as her eyes adjusted to the dim light dappling the forest floor. It was actually pretty nice. She could see all kinds of flowers and hear a lone bird singing somewhere. The floor was carpeted with autumn leaves in colours of fire and earth. It was relaxing too... they walked straight for a few minutes before Ichigo asked something that had been bugging her for a while.

"Did you have a girlfriend?"

"Huh?" Kisshu glanced at her through the corner of his eye. "Why would you ask that?" He shook his head. "It doesn't matter now. I'm with you, so why care about the past?"

Ichigo blushed, feeling a little stupid. "I was curious. You seem to know lots about me, but I know barely anything about you."

"Except how to defeat me every time we see each other!" Kisshu laughed, and then sighed when he saw Ichigo biting her lip, probably trying to find a way to pursue the subject tactfully. He stared up at the covered sky, wishing she wasn't quite so curious. "Yeah, I had a girlfriend, a long time ago."

"A long tine ago?" Ichigo asked. _He can't be more than a few years older than me!_

He smiled slightly. "My lifetime's about twice to three times the length of yours. So, yes, I would definitely say it was a long time ago."

Kisshu watched as Ichigo thought through the multiple implications with wide eyes, and smiled as she proceeded to question him about various aspects of his past and his home. She interrogated him about what it was like - the places, the people, the feelings.

Ichigo enjoyed finding out about him, and she liked how his eyes lit up as if they were embers flaring up in a fire when he talked about something he remembered but after about twenty minutes it looked to her like they were heading into the middle of nowhere.

"Where exactly are we going, Kisshu?"

Kisshu looked around, apparently not having have heard.

"Perfect!" He said, making less sense by the minute. He suddenly turned to Ichigo and put her hand on his arm. "Now," He grinned playfully. "Hold on tight."

Ichigo did so out of pure confusion. Suddenly the wind changed direction and began to blow in all directions and she had the impression of moving very fast through the air. Ichigo couldn't place the timing – they could've been like that for hours or seconds.

As abruptly as it had began, the strange sensation ended, and instead of the leafy expanse of the forest, Ichigo was staring across the vast span of a glittering lake that was surrounded by smooth pebbles and stretched farther than the eye could see. The water was a pale blue that looked like the morning sky in summer, and the air was clean and smelt faintly of lavender. To add to the scene, they had landed directly in front of a copse of smooth ash trees that further infused the air with their musky scent.

To say Ichigo was speechless would be an understatement of the most obvious kind.

And Kisshu was enjoying every second of it.

"It's...amazing!" She breathed.

"I'm glad you like it." He watched her taking everything in. He saw how the light touched her skin, creating a soft glow; how her peaceful smile lifted his heart and he wished with his entire being, that just for one moment he could be truly human so she wouldn't have to hide anything. So she would never be hurt. Such easy words to wish.... Kisshu reached out to take her hand when-

BZZZZZZ. BZZZZZ. BZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

A vibration shattered the still moment, snapping Ichigo out of her reverie and she rushed to her swim bag, fishing out a phone. "Hello?" She said into the receiver, standing up. The serene smile slowly dropped from her mouth and the light dimmed in her eyes as she listened for a while then nodded. "Wait, now? Do I have -….Fine. I'll be there soon. Bye."

Ichigo looked at Kisshu and saw the question in his eyes. "It's Ryou-san," She explained."I have to go."

Kisshu bit his tongue, refrained himself from throwing the phone into the water and nodded to the floor. _That fool. _He thought, suppressing the anger that was boiling up inside._ One day I swear I'll have to put an end to his interference. _

"Do you have to go?" Kisshu hated how he sounded like a whiney kid.

She nodded.

He felt his fists slowly clenching and dropped them to his sides.

"Uh..." Ichigo ventured. "Is that ok?"

"Sure." He replied stoically. Ichigo stiffened. She felt she was being caught in between a rock and a hard place. Ichigo took a deep breath and walked up to him, resting her forehead on his shoulder, feeling him flinch at the contact.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. "I'm sorry I can't stay. I'm sorry I can't tell anyone about us. I'm sorry I might not be good enough. I'm sorry-"

Her voice soothed his anger and left cold disappointment in its wake.

Kisshu cut her off by lifting her face up and brushing a stray wisp of hair behind her ear before smiling and placing tantalisingly sweet kiss on her lips.

"Don't say that," He whispered, "Don't ever say that. You're much more than I deserve, and I don't care who knows or doesn't. So don't ever apologise to me for those things because you have done nothing wrong."

There was a few seconds peaceful silence before Ichigo voiced a rather crucial point. "Kisshu… would you mind taking me back…?"

Staring at the floor he waved his hand and a portal appeared just behind Ichigo. He didn't see her wave sadly as she went through and the portal closed up behind her.

"Don't you think," A voice said above him. "That you were going beyond the call of duty?" Kisshu looked up and spun round so fast he almost fell over. Pai and Taruto were balancing in the branches of a tall ash tree.

Kisshu felt his skin heat up, and replied tersely. "Don't be stupid. I was just being... thorough."

Another voice chimed in. "Looked a bit..." Taruto made a face.

"Taruto? What're you doing here?" Suddenly a human pun occurred to him. _What are you two doing in a tree?_ But he shook his head before pausing for a split-second as the penny dropped with the weight of lead. "What the- Hey! You're too young to see that!" Taruto just shrugged.

"Wait. Were you spying on me?" His voice turned low and accusing.

"No. We were merely checking on your progress." Pai intoned.

Kisshu crossed his arms let out a slow, hissing breath. Once again, they were inching closer and closer to what they shouldn't... what they couldn't know.

"Why are you so defensive, Kisshu?"

Kisshu had learned not to react. "I am _not_ defensive." He muttered. "Just stay out of my way."

Taruto smirked. "What's with the human get up?"

Kisshu just walked away. Or tried to, anyway.

"Deep Blue-sama wants to speak with you immediately." Kisshu suddenly felt really pissed off. Why did everything have to revolve around their 'Leader' that never showed his face?

"I've got better things to do." He said, again making as if to walk away. He didn't know where to, but just someplace where he could sort out the mess in his mind.

But wherever Kisshu turned to escape, he could only move a few feet in any direction. He kicked out at a pebble in front of him in frustration. It was old technology by their standards; a touch-operated system pre-programmed to one set of fingerprints – all someone would have to do was activate the sensor and point to four places which marked the 'cage'. It was very simple, but very effective. Too effective, Kisshu thought. Back home, he had taught people how to use these types of gadgets, so he knew better than most how pointless it was to try to escape.

Nanoseconds later the device had transported him back to there base, staring at the incandescently wavering form of their director. But it was in one of the lower levels that resembled a prison – a long line of rooms with locked doors.

"You rang?" Kisshu said, bending in a semi-bow. Appearances were important when dealing with people of higher rank, especially since Kisshu had a very bad feeling about being summoned in such a manner – like someone somewhere would be walking over his grave soon. He silently called his dragon swords to him and held them ready behind his back.

The form of Deep Blue shimmered and the swords were ripped out of his hands by an unseen force, and Kisshu was sent flying back, hitting the wall several feet up with such force the whole room shook, before he collapsed to the ground with an audible thump that echoed of the walls of the cold stone cell. _Okay, that hurt. A lot._ Kisshu coughed and slowly tried to sit up. "What did I do to deserve that?" He said, wiping blood from his mouth.

"You are a traitor," Deep Blue said softly. "A traitor that cannot be trusted and must therefore be punished."

* * *

**Once again, Sorry for how long it took to get this up here, but the next chapter will take no where near as long as this one did. Speaking of which, this one's longer than the others, so maybe that's why it took more time.**

**This has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but it's mid-winter in the story. **

**Anyway, please tell me what you thought – horrendously bad or dazzlingly good? ...probably just somewhere in-between, but I don't mind ^_^**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hiya! **

**Thank you for reading this far, and thanks to all the reviewers, and people who story alerted this. Because of the Easter break I finally managed to get this chapter finished and updated, so please enjoy chapter 5.**

* * *

Deep Blue took on the form of a human – though the limbs were still translucent and his features were there but insubstantial, made from the same iridescent material as the rest of his body. "You are a traitor. A traitor that cannot be trusted." He waved a hand and an image of Kisshu kissing Ichigo moments ago was projected into the dusty air by some hidden source, and was taken away as fast as it had appeared.

"Now _that_was part of my plan." Kisshu protested.

"You even look like one of them now. Are you so ready to abandon your race? Would you really change who you are for this girl? For this_ human_?"

Kisshu leant heavily on the wall and pushed himself to his feet. "You of all people have no idea what it's like to care about someone other than yourself." Deep blue just laughed – a chilling sound that froze the soul.

"The human race is a sickness to the Earth – a sickness that should be healed."

"How would murdering billions of people be healing?" Kisshu muttered under his breath.

"We must heal the Earth, not the parasites that now inhabit it. With this plan, am I not the one who leads you to the object of salvation for our people?"

Kisshu clenched his fists. He could carry on the charade, but it looked like Deep Blue had found out his real intentions.

"First off, they're my people, not yours. You are not one of us, but you're not one of the humans either." Kisshu hesitated. He may have been found out, but with the right words, he might just be able to free himself; any careless words would end his life. How could he change anything or help anyone if he were dead? "You're something else altogether. Like a shadow of life, or an imitation, not the real thing."

The wavering form smiled and began to fade away. "You are very perceptive. It will be a shame when you die." Kisshu's heart sank in his chest as if it was made of lead and he started to sway slightly as it became harder to stay upright. "Well," he said, and with effort put a cocky smile on his face. "I've heard death is some adventure. I guess I'll be seeing you in the afterlife pretty soon though."

Deep Blue's form had become almost transparent, but in Kisshu's mind, a voice made purely of ice whispered "I will live forever. Cling to whatever hope you want, you shall not be forgiven, and I shall make sure that the one you would betray your world for is also punished_._"

Kisshu stifled his urge to flinch and waited until the form had disappeared completely before gratefully dropping back onto the hard ground.

"That went well." He said sarcastically, pulling his knees into his chest and wearily resting his head on them. _I need a plan,_ he thought,_ I have to get out of here._

_/ / / _

"Hello?" Ichigo called into the empty café. "Ryou-san?" When no one answered she walked in and dumped her coat and swimming bag on a chair then looked around the kitchens and changing rooms but it was all completely deserted. _Why is nobody here?_After Ryou's (rather badly timed) phone call to tell her he needed her at the cafe A.S.A.P, she expected everyone to be there. He made it sound like there was some sort of emergency. She sighed and sat down, flipping open her phone. _Maybe I should call him. _

"Thanks for coming so quickly."

_Eeep! _Ichigo looked up to see Ryou standing in front of her. "Where'd you come from?" She asked, trying to conceal the fact that he had just made her jump a mile.

"Downstairs." He replied nonchalantly.

"So where is everyone?"

All of a sudden, he looked uncomfortable. "Uh, it's just you I needed to see, although this is …difficult."

"What are you saying?" Ryou was never normally this unsure and serious.

"You have to stop what you're doing with that guy." He said all in a rush, like the words might burn his tongue if he didn't get them out fast enough.

_He can't know…_she thought, tensing up. _He can't._

"Aoyama-kun?" Ichigo asked, staring at the ceiling.

"No, Ichigo." Ryou said in a tone most unlike him. "Kisshu."

Ichigo stared at him with wide eyes_. That's impossible_. _How did he know?_Ichigo paused and thought of the flash of blonde hair she'd seen and the feeling she'd had of being watched, and it all made sense. She felt despair rise up and it choked her. She coughed and in a desperate attempt to change the topic, she replied coldly "What gives you the right to be so familiar with me?"

"Please don't make this harder than it has to be."

"You're the one that's making it hard." Something in Ichigo snapped. "Why can't you leave us alone? We aren't hurting anyone..." She bit her lip, wishing she was back at the lake. Anywhere to get away from the horrible things she was being told.

"You aren't, but he will. He's just using you." Ryou said emotionlessly, his face a blank mask.

Ichigo suddenly felt very cold, as if her blood had turned to ice in her veins. _No!_

He continued, unaware of Ichigo's internal protest. "One day he will disappear with the Mew Aqua, and you'll never see him again."

"That's not true!" Ichigo exclaimed sharply. "He's never even asked me about the Mew Aqua. Not once."

"That doesn't mean he won't." Ryou said darkly. "So you need to get away and stay away from him, before he finds a way to get what he wants through you."

"NO!" She screamed. "You're lying!" Ichigo turned away and said more quietly "Kisshu would never do that. He loves me for who I am. You have to understand, Ryou-san, I-"

"Ichigo."

"-Mean he's different to what you-"

Ryou let out a hissing breath and Ichigo flinched as she felt his warm hand on her arm, pulling her round to face him.

"Would you just shut up and listen?" he said, irritated. Why wasn't she even giving him a chance to explain?

Ichigo froze in his hold and involuntarily glanced into his sapphire eyes.

"I get it. You like him because you don't have to hide, right? But he's just using you. It's like a game to him. If you don't stop right now then he's going to hurt the whole of the human race." He hesitated before adding more gently, "He's going to hurt you too, and I don't want that to happen."

"If he doesn't love me, then do you?" Ichigo snapped. She instantly felt silly but her anger took over all other emotions.

Ryou didn't answer for a while. "I...care about you, about all of you." If she had been thinking straight, she would have recognised the sadness behind his words but she could barely form a coherent sentence.

"You _have _to care." Ryou still had his hand on her arm and Ichigo was suddenly very aware of how close he was.... Close enough to feel her heart race; she was sure....Too close. "Because you made me what I am."

She tore herself from his arms and grabbing her coat and bag with one arm she ran out of the café, eyes blurred with tears.

"Ichigo, come back!"

She ignored him and ran blindly through the streets. _Why would he say all those hateful lies? _She had thought he was her friend, someone she could trust to back her up when it mattered. Ichigo slowed to a walk when she couldn't see the café anymore and by the time she got home the sun was starting to set, bathing her house in a soft ruby glow. She unlocked the door and went straight to her room, ignoring the welcomes and concerned glances from her parents. She wasn't trying to be rude, but at that time, with those feelings… Acting normal seemed out of the question. Ichigo sat heavily on the bed and hugged her pillow tight. She sat like that for what felt like ages and ages. _Ryou is wrong, but I can't go back to that argument. Not like that. _After a lot of thought Ichigo made up her mind. She wouldn't go back to the Café until he apologised. That was the end of it, and she wouldn't doubt Kisshu.

But just as she drifted of to sleep, she thought about what she would do if Ryou was right and Kisshu would leave her behind. _I guess I'll… never be myself again. _

_/ / /_

So the next day Ichigo didn't go to the café, and all day she made sure she had things to think about so she wouldn't dwell on what had happened. But when she got home Ichigo realised that she had run out of things to think about. _No. I won't go back until Ryou admits he was wrong. _Ichigo shook her head and fished her maths book out of her bag. _You know things are bad when you have to resort to homework._Ichigo thought, chewing on the end of a pencil as she considered the equation in front of her.

An hour or so later, Ichigo was seriously considering introducing her work to the paper shredder, and was grateful when her phone beeped, announcing she had a text.

From: Ryou Shirogane

Forget what happened in the café, the rest of the Mew Mew's are in danger. Go to the central park as Mew Ichigo.

She stared at it for a few seconds before moving into action, grabbing shoes and warmer clothes. Yes, she'd quit working at the café but if her friends were in trouble then that was something different. Ichigo hurriedly scribbled out a note to her parents and left it on the table, running out the door and heading for the park. What could have happened in the one day she wasn't around…? Ichigo reached the gates and looked around to make sure no-one was looking before taking out her pendant and transformed into Mew Ichigo. She welcomed the rush of new energy and walked into the park only to stop a few steps in to take all that was happening in.

Mint was firing volleys of blue arrows one after the other at the cat chimera but it dodged her attacks with surprising agility. Zakuro moved just as quickly, leaping from branch to branch as the chimera's ebony paws reached for her, its lithe body following her and its darting eyes hinting at its ferocity.

Lettuce was faring the worst. Pai was causing havoc, making deep grooves into the grass with his onslaught of Fuu-Rai-Sen. Lettuce seemed reluctant to cause the park more damage by using an attack as a form of defence.

Ichigo watched Lettuce barely dodge an attack and deciding it was time to step in, she ran over and pulled Lettuce out of the way.

"Ichigo!" Lettuce exclaimed, "He just showed up and -"

"Help Mint and Zakuro defeat the Chimera animal. I'll take care of Pai." Ichigo interrupted, quickly moving away from the others, hoping to avoid getting them hurt by focusing Pai's attention on her. She quickly glanced up where he was hovering in the air then blinked in surprise as his Fuu-Rai-Sen disappeared in a flash of blue light.

_What's he thinking? He's defenceless now…_But as the light faded Ichigo saw that Pai's normal weapons had been replaced with –

"How did you get those?" Ichigo asked, fighting the dread that racked through her body.

"Kisshu sends his regards," Pai replied calmly, positioning Kisshu's twin dragon swords; lifting the right above his head, stretching the left in front of him and aimed it at her throat. "He's occupied with another task at the moment, something to do with the Mew Aqua."

"What?"

"You should pay attention to what's going on in front of you." Pai's eyes seemed to smile though his lips never moved, and then he disappeared.

The blow came from behind her and she instinctively turned and raised the strawberry bell to block the high slash of the crossed swords.

_Crap! He's strong. If he hits me with those then I'm going to need more than just a plaster. C'mon…focus. Fight back. _

Ichigo tried to concentrate on sending her power down her arms to the strawberry bell. She could feel it, a kind of soft tingling, and was only dimly aware of Pai uncrossing his swords and repositioning them for another hit.

Ichigo sent the power to her hands and called out, "Ribbon strawberry Che-!"

"I don't think so." Pai interrupted as he slashed at her first with his left sword, diagonally raking across where her torso would have been had she not dodged, then turning to do the same with his right sword before realising she had moved.

Ichigo stepped to the left just in time, throwing up the strawberry bell to block his next flurry of slashing attacks, each one slightly more powerful than the last, forcing her to move further and further back to dodge.

There was a slight pause in the assailment, and suddenly Ichigo understood the pattern as if someone had mapped it out_. _

_He comes at me with both swords at the same time. So far I've only been blocking them, cutting them off at an angle. But what if I…_

The attacks resumed and Ichigo used the strawberry bell as a shield, but on the third and final attack in the pattern she angled the heart-shaped weapon so it was titled and caught both of Pai's swords in the middle. Ichigo suppressed a smile as the normally stoic enemy tried to pull back and was yanked forward by his trapped weapons.

Pai looked at her for a split second and she saw the contempt in his eyes, and was surprised at the intensity of the animosity there. That moment of distraction was all Pai needed to free his right sword and sliced it in a deadly arc aimed for her head. She stumbled back and his left sword was also freed and pointed once again in her direction.

Pai lunged forward, deadly calculation showing in his eyes. Ichigo followed her instinct and fell to the floor, kicking out one leg and knocking his feet out from under him, making him drop to all fours.

Ichigo quickly stood and gathered her power to the strawberry bell. The power ran quicker this time.

A piercing scream broke through her concentration and Ichigo spun around, eyes wide in horror. The chimera animal had knocked Mint to the ground and the scream had come from Lettuce as the morphed cat had sliced its claws through her side. Mint stood quickly, drew her bow and took aim. "Ribbon Mint Echo!"

Ichigo breathed a sigh of relief as her glowing azure arrows whistled through the air and caught the Chimera's paw, effectively making it pull away from its second swipe at Lettuce.

Ichigo turned back to face her opponent when she saw the flash of the swords, but was too slow to block the attack. She hissed in a sharp breath as the tip slid across her arm, splitting the skin and leaving a trail of blood from her shoulder to just below the joint in her arm. It wasn't very deep, but the blood flowed steadily down her arm.

Ichigo swallowed the feeling of panic and forced herself to be calm. When she had looked around it had seemed that Pai was running to her, but he had sped right past her, the swords catching the sun and giving her only a split-seconds notice. Ichigo briefly pressed a shaking hand to the wound and faced Pai. He was staring at the sun as if checking something and she quickly drew the power together and let it out as a raw beam of energy through the chiming strawberry bell. It hit its mark and the swords were knocked out of his hands.

They disappeared in a flash of blue light before they even hit the floor. He looked straight at her then, and faster than she could see, he was standing in front of her, swinging his leg in a high kick and Ichigo blocked it with her uninjured arm, flinching as he leant forward and closed his fingers around her wrist, preventing her from blocking as he lowered his leg and summoned his Fuu-Rai-Sen. Ichigo started to struggle out of Pai's stronghold grip as it started to glow. In desperation she searched around in her mind for an answer and was surprised as an idea dawned on her. She braced herself and kicked off the floor, launching into the air, held down only by her wrist, flipped over, landing behind Pai, holding his wrist behind his back.

Ichigo was panting slightly – that move had made the blood run faster than before. Her grip must've loosened, because he pulled his hand away, stepping back a few paces. Pai stared at her with eyes that seemed almost gloating and he stepped back into the portal that had just opened behind him. "I think that's all I need." Pai said, vanishing completely.

Ichigo heard surprised exclamations from behind her and turned to see that the chimera had gone too. Lettuce helped Mint up and Ichigo rushed over to do the same when she stopped at Mint's horrified expression. "What?" she asked.

Mint pointed to her arm. The blood had run all the way down to her fingers and was dripping onto the floor. "Oh!" Ichigo said. "Don't worry; it looks worse than it is." Ichigo looked down and winced. "Although maybe I should get it cleaned up before I go home."

After a quick discussion the girls made their way to the café, Mint and Lettuce filling in what had happened before she got there. They talked about it as just another fight but Ichigo knew something had been different, that something was off.

After a few minutes of fruitless searching around and inside the café, Lettuce found the first aid box. "It was buried under a few things." She explained, putting it on a table and flipping it open top reveal assorted bandages and plasters. Lettuce had told Ichigo to clean the cut before covering it up and Ichigo winced as she let cold water run over her arm. _How am I going to explain this to anyone?_She wondered. Lettuce applied a bandage and tended to her own injuries. Another thing that wasn't quite right – they never really got this beaten up when fighting the chimera animals. Soon Lettuce had been patched up too and she and Mint left the café to go home. Ichigo waved her goodbyes to the girls as they went, and the minor concern was immediately overrun when Ichigo saw the clock. _Half nine?_ _How am I supposed to explain half nine to my parents! _While she slowly descended into a steep spiral of doom, Ryou's reserved voice protruded through her panicking. "Do you need a ride home?"

Ichigo vaguely wondered whether he was psychic or whether she had been thinking aloud.

"I…can walk home, thanks." Suddenly she started giggling as her phone vibrated in her pocket. "Hello?" She answered. "Wha-? I know I'm late but - … Ok. I'll be home as soon as I can. Bye, dad."

Ichigo sighed as she snapped her phone shut.

She looked back up and Ryou and if she didn't know any better she could've sworn he was trying not to laugh. "You sure you don't want a lift?"

Ichigo gave in. "Yes, please."

Ryou nodded and they walked outside to the solitary car parked out front. Ichigo questioned how she could have missed it on the way in – the red car was hardly inconspicuous. Ryou unlocked the doors and Ichigo was about to get in when she caught him staring at her. "W-What?"

"Nothing much. I just thought you'd want to change back to yourself before you got home. Then again, your parents might like the idea of you being a Mew Mew, although I doubt it." He said, straight faced. Ichigo caught on and glanced down at her pink Mew Mew outfit.

"Oops." She held up a finger. "Just give me one sec…" She closed her eyes and concentrated on powering down and when she opened her eyes she was back in her own clothes. Unfortunately, a dull throbbing in her arm had appeared as well as her normal clothes. _I wish I could've left that behind._They got into the car and Ryou reversed out of the café, into the main street.

It was a quick journey, Ichigo only speaking to give Ryou directions. Soon he was pulling up outside her house. "Thanks." Ichigo said as she opened the car door and got out only to cringe back as the front door opened and her mum came out with an expression more suited to a stone statue for all the emotion that showed.

"Hi." Ichigo said lamely

"Where have you been?" Her mother's eyes looked straight over her head for a second and Ichigo realised that Ryou hadn't left, and was standing right behind her. But he was…_smiling._

Not a sarcastic smile but an actual…Ichigo was left speechless.

"I'm sorry for keeping your daughter out so late, but we were tidying up after an event at the café and lost track of time." Ryou looked almost sheepish at the end. Ryou! Sheepish! He was also telling a blatant lie, but her mother's expression softened just as Ichigo's father walked up behind her, stony faced. Ichigo prayed that they wouldn't notice the slight bulge of the bandages on her arm. Sakura returned Ryou's smile. "It's ok," She explained to Shintaro. "Ichigo was just working late at the café." Ichigo's father opened his mouth to argue but Sakura cut him off. "Now, what kind of people would we be to leave our daughter and her friend out in the cold?" She turned to Ryou. "Why don't you come in?"

Shintaro made a sort of disgruntled mutter and Ryou respectfully declined. Suddenly the kettle started wailing. "Ah, excuse me," Ichigo's mother said, and somehow taking Shintaro with her, went to the kitchen leaving Ichigo and Ryou alone again.

Ichigo just stared at him, wide eyed.

"What?" He asked the smile already fading from his face. "I can't have you being grounded, can I? You need to be able to come to the café."

"But…You…" Ichigo stuttered, still in shock. So much so she forgot to say that she was still mad at him for all the things he said about Kisshu.

Ryou rolled his eyes and sighed. "As hard as it is to believe, I can actually be nice. But," He said, walking away from Ichigo to his car. "It's just too much fun teasing you."

"Hey! That's-" Ichigo was cut off as her father appeared behind her. "I'm coming." She said, shrinking slightly under his black expression. She walked into the house and shut the door behind her.

"Ichigo," He started and was promptly stopped by Ichigo's mother who cheerfully dumped a pile of wet clothes straight from the washing machine into his arms. "You wouldn't mind hanging these to dry, would you dear?" She asked sweetly.

Shintaro muttered exasperatedly, and her mother threw Ichigo a wink as soon as his back was turned. Ichigo grinned back, silently thanking whatever gave her mother the knowledge to stop her dad's long-winded lectures.

/ / /

When Ichigo woke up the next day, she still held a grudge against Ryou, but it was a little weaker in resolve than it had been. Ichigo decided to go on as normal. But when Kisshu didn't come to see her the next day, or the next, or the next, Ichigo worried about many things; what could have happened, but she waited for him, even if it was just to say goodbye.

She waited for him...

And waited...

And waited, until Ryou's explanation backed up by Pai's comments was the only one that made the least bit of sense, and the hours stopped feeling like days, and the real days turned to weeks, and bit by bit, feeling by feeling, she accepted he was not coming back... and so life carried on.

Ichigo worked at the cafe, attended school and went on dates with Aoyama-kun as if Kisshu touching her heart was nothing more than a dream within a dream. She still fought for the Mew Aqua but always, hidden away in a dark corner of her mind was the feeling of freedom she'd tasted in the few days that she's been with Kisshu. It was a feeling unlike any other. But it wasn't just the feeling…There were questions too. If he was going to leave, wouldn't it be after he got the Mew Aqua? Why trick her into believing his lies then disappear without getting what he wanted? Some things just didn't add up. It was like she knew what the jigsaw puzzle was, but she was missing the centre piece. But she took all these things and locked them up and didn't make a key.

/ / /

It was a few months after Ichigo sealed the lock that it was forced back open.

"Now," Ichigo's teacher said, "We're studying literature from the pre-twentieth century. Look at page 14 in your textbooks. Momomiya, read the first paragraph." her poetry teacher asked. Ichigo nodded, stifling back a yawn. It was the last lesson of the day, and her tiredness was taking over. She looked down at her textbook began to read.

"Ever since that time I've hidden away, but now I'm letting what's been into the dark see the light; the thoughts that have tortured me in my sleep for so many nights. It hurts when I think about them. It hurts when I see them. But I ignored it. I fought. I lived." Ichigo felt much more awake now. Her heart was pounding in her chest. "But it was so lonely. I felt the most alone when I was surrounded by friends who didn't understand, family who didn't notice. It was when I was when no-one was with me that I could feel your presence most clearly. I could imagine you next to me, talking to me, laughing with me. Does that sound strange? I suppose it is. But that was the only way I could forget how you hurt me – by remembering our happy times, short as they were."

She trailed off as the page ended.

"Well done," her teacher commented. "If we look at the structure and break it down we can see that the piece starts with…."

Ichigo closed her eyes and concentrated on taking deep, slow breathes. The feelings and memories and the questions surrounding him were flooding her into mind, and she desperately tried to stop them but her head refused to hear her – it was too busy listening to her heart. It was as if that writer had wandered into her mind and wrote down everything she had felt for weeks… and it brought back the feeling… the freedom…

The whole class stared at Ichigo as her chair screeched along the floor when she stood up and without a word she ran out of the classroom, barely hearing the mutterings of the class. Ichigo walked around the school – it was completely empty. She started to walk a little faster, and before she knew it she was running through the main doors and down the road. Ichigo couldn't think why she was acting so off. _The school's going to realise I've left and call my parents. What am I doing?_

The truth was she just wanted to get rid of the unruly emotions that Ki-. That he left behind when he left. Ichigo swerved right and slowed down, finding herself in the park where she had fought Pai when he had the dragon swords.

_Kisshu…_ It hurt her somewhere inside to say his name. Just a tiny stab, somewhere around her heart. _Everything leads back to him. _"Kisshu…" Just once couldn't hurt too much…

Ichigo sat on a bench under some cherry blossom tree's and closed her eyes. She had tried to block him out, but it all came at once, and all the reasoning in the world meant nothing. She had loved him. She still did love him. But he had just vanished without saying anything, after he'd sworn he loved her. _I guess he must've hated me. _

Ichigo didn't notice she was crying until the tears dropped onto her hands, and she held them up to the sun in faint surprise, watching the little drops catch the light and shine. They reminded her of nothing so much as tiny fragments of glass. Ichigo stared at it until she had no tears left to cry, and she wiped a hand over her eyes. It was time to go home. She stood and walked out of the park, each step feeling like a lifetime.

Ryou snatched his hand back and quickly stepped into the shadows as Ichigo stood from the bench and left. He'd just been passing by when he seen her crying, and had started walking towards her when he found himself walking into a tree instead. _Ow._Ryou shook his head and looked at Ichigo. She hadn't heard him. She was just staring at something on her hands. The tears were still coming down her face. That was when he had felt the sudden urge to wipe them away and tell her it was all going to be ok. His hand stretched out to her almost of its own accord, and he stepped forward when she suddenly moved and Ryou backed up against the same tree that had been in his way. He shook his head in disbelief after she had gone - He just didn't know what was wrong with him. He shouldn't have acted like that and couldn't think of a word to say if he had gone along with that crazy feeling. Ryou clenched his fists. He might not know what he was thinking, but he saw Ichigo mouth one word, and that word looked like it was killing her from the inside. "Damn green-haired alien." He muttered, walking away from the park. That kid was seriously starting to annoy him.

/ / /

Six hours and a large coffee later, Ryou's fingers were flying across the keys, tapping streams of numbers into the computer, and he was frowning slightly at the results. "Hey," Keiichiro's voice pulled Ryou's attention from the screen. "Don't work so hard." He said, leaning on hand on the back of Ryou's chair to peer at the data scrolling down on the monitor.

"No chance of that." Ryou replied dryly. "I'm almost there, though. I've almost found where they are." Keiichiro's eyes widened a fraction of an inch as he pulled up a chair to the computer.

"Co-ordinates…" he said quietly. "Yes…that might just work… and we're almost done with the portal…" He trailed off for a moment then his dark eyes narrowed with uncharacteristic sharpness. "Don't take any unnecessary risks. We have time; we can get to them some other way."

"There might not be another chance like this. That dimension _moves_. It might not be there when we're ready. It's only once. If I can get a tracker in there then we'll be able to find it and end it all."

"Ryou," Keiichiro said firmly, but Ryou's fingers just moved over the keyboard again. "You can't do this now. It's not time." The keys were tapped faster.

Keiichiro snapped his fingers just in front of Ryou's face.

"You clicked?" Ryou said, smiling slightly, but not taking his eyes of the screen.

"You're not even listening to me, are you?"

"I am, but-"

"But you're not going to act on it. I understand what this means to you, but you can't go off on your own without any plans or preparations."

Ryou finally turned away from the computer and Keiichiro gave him a long, measured look.

"Don't worry; I'll still be here in the morning."

"Ok, I believe you. Just remember to get some sleep. You'll scare the girls and the customers if you're sleep deprived." He joked. Ryou waved as Keiichiro drew his chair back and stood to leave. "Ah, one more thing."

"Hmm?"

Keiichiro slid a steaming cup of coffee and a generous slice of chocolate cake down the table. "I thought you might need a snack."

"Thanks." Ryou said, gratefully taking the drink and letting the warmth spread through his hands. Keiichiro walked out of the room, his long ponytail swishing behind him, and Ryou leant back in his chair. _I'm sorry, Keiichiro, but this is something I have to do. _

Another half-hour later and Ryou typed in a long string of co-ordinates and watched as he started to fade from this dimension, hopefully into the other. Then everything went black.

/ / /

"Hey. Long time no see."

Ryou slowly opened his eyes at the sound of a voice and wanted to shut them again when he saw who it was. Well, at least he had made it to where he aimed to go.

He opened his eyes to find himself slumped against a stone wall and the person who had just spoken to him - "You…" Ryou said, wordless in his surprise. "So that's where you ran off to." He sat straighter and looked around. It seemed to be a long corridor made of hewn stone, but there were no stairs and the only doors were ones into empty rooms all along the room. There was a sliver electrical-type object at the other side, but he would explore that later. Ryou sensed that the kid wanted to ask him something, but since he definitely wasn't going to do him any favours, he let the dead silence hang between them.

"Since you're here, you can tell me something. How is she?" Kisshu said abruptly.

"Who?"

Kisshu leant against the wall and closed his eyes. "Ichigo."

"Why would you care?" Ryou replied roughly. Kisshu was ripping apart the Mew Mews, his team, and Ryou saw no reason to be polite to him.

"You know about us, so you know why I'm asking."

"What would you do if I said she's forgotten all about you?"

"Oh." Kisshu suppressed the urge to flinch at the words. That sentence mirrored everything Deep Blue had tried to convince him of, driving a sharp stake into his heart.

"She seemed to…for a while." Ryou said, briefly remembering how he'd seen her in the park, crying. How he'd wanted to help her but hadn't known what to say. Of course, he wasn't about to tell that to the green-haired punk who was the reason she was hurt in the first place. "But then something happened and she got hurt again."

Kisshu's eyes snapped open, glowing like hot embers. "Something? If it was that human-"

"No. I think it was you." Ryou said.

The embers slowly dimmed. "Give it a rest. I did what I could to protect her."

"I told her two things about you. That you'd steal the Mew Aqua and that you'd hurt her."

Kisshu gave a hollow laugh. "Yep, I've definitely got the Mew Aqua which is why I'm hanging out here." He opened his mouth to defend himself against the second accusation then closed it again when he realised that he couldn't say anything. "I think I'm paying the price for that now."

"Maybe." Ryou said. "There's just one thing that doesn't make sense." He continued, almost to himself. "Why did she seem so much happier, so much more relaxed when she was with you?"

"I'm not all that bad then, huh?" When Ryou didn't reply, he gave up trying to get an answer.

"She's lonely." Kisshu said softly. "More than she could tell anyone."

"She has the rest of the Mew Mews," Ryou argued, "her school friends, Keiichiro, me…"

"And how many of the people you just said did she tell about me? That's my point. She didn't tell me she was feeling like that either, but I could see it, and I understood her. She's different to others of her kind, to other humans. She wants a normal life, but she can't have one."

"That's down to you. If you want her-"

"Was I the one that gave her the animal genes? Kisshu interrupted. "No. Sure I was here, and I was here first, but you're the one that involved her in this."

"As long as you're here she'll keep being involved. The genes wear off as soon as the need for them disappears." Ryou glanced across at Kisshu meaningfully.

Kisshu avoided the look and stared at the ceiling with a pained expression.

"Tell me you're kidding." He said, grasping at straws.

"No. It's true."

"You did that on purpose." Kisshu sighed.

There was a few seconds of silence then Kisshu looked around incredulously as Ryou suddenly started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Kisshu asked, wondering where he could possibly find a source of amusement in their predicament.

"Your ears," Ryou said, biting his lip. "One's human and the other is…"

Kisshu lifted his hand, touched both ears and it seemed that one was already back to normal. He imagined what he must look like and started laughing too. "Strange…That should have worn off ages ago."

"Why do you look like that anyway?" Ryou asked, still smiling slightly.

"Less noticeable," Kisshu replied. "Although you could still tell. And I don't appreciate you following us around."

"I'm good at my job. If that includes having to follow you then that's it." Ryou countered.

"I think you have too much free time on your hands."

Ryou just took his phone out of his pocket and started dialling.

"If you're calling for takeout ramen then I can save you the trouble. There's no signal here. Our technology would scramble any signal sent from yours."

"I can unscramble it. But it seems that I, unlike you, actually want to get out of here." Ryou commented dryly. "I've checked the schematics of the building and there's a weak spot in your force field. With a little help from the outside I can use that to my advantage. After all, it's the same way I got here, just in reverse."

"When do you think you'll be putting this plan of yours into action?"

Ryou turned his wrist so he could see his watch. "About now."

Kisshu stood and dusted off his jeans. "I'll make a distraction." He started to walk to the other end of the corridor, towards the silver thing which Ryou guessed was some kind of data port.

Ryou looked at him strangely. "You know R2000 can only take one person."

"R2000? That fluffy thing that eats the chimera?"

Ryou nodded.

"Yeah, but I figured one of us needs to be there for her. By the way," Kisshu said over his shoulder, "if you let her get hurt, I'm going to seriously kill you."

"Going by your own logic, you should already be dead." Ryou muttered softly, but he heard it anyway.

Kisshu smiled to himself and tapped in a code. "There. All done. You have about two minutes to get ready and get out of here."

There was a short pause and Kisshu's smile turned into a wicked grin as the ear-splitting alarm bells sounded. "Go, now!" He yelled over the noise and leant against the metal port as Ryou began to glow, faintly at first but the threads of light that surrounded him became more solid until they swirled around him like wind blowing sand in to intricate spirals. Then suddenly the light turned gold and expanded, filling the whole space and Kisshu threw his arm over his eyes to shield them, so he didn't notice that his feet were glowing... and all around him, light mixed with dust was swirling around him too.

All the light in the room seemed to explode outwards and the force sent loose chippings and dust flying everywhere, ensuring the small, dark tracking device left there wouldn't be noticed.

Taruto was the first to pick up on the disturbance and ran down to the lower levels, wondering what was making such a weird noise. When he got there he just stared at the empty space, considered telling someone but decided not too. After all, everyone one else seemed far too busy. And he hadn't seen Kisshu in a while either…

/ / /

Kisshu blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the bright, natural sunlight. _What the…?_

He realised he was lying on gravel and sat up, more than a little confused.

"Hello? Yes, it's me. ..What?"

Kisshu looked around and saw that he was sitting in the middle of a copse of trees, and the blonde guy was standing a few meters away talking on a mobile.

"How long have I been away?"Ryou asked, and looked surprised at the answer. "Two _weeks_? That's impossible…"

Kisshu coughed pointedly and Ryou turned around. "Hold on, I'll be right back."

"Uh, sorry about that," Kisshu said quickly. "Time flows differently in there because it's a kind of separate dimension. Normally we keep it tuned in and locked to Earth time but I think we haven't changed it lately. And I think you were unconscious for a while too, before you came to where I was. "

Ryou shook his head. "Unbelievable." He muttered, and then started talking back into the phone.

Kisshu stood up properly and was pleased to notice he was back in his own attire, ears and all. Human clothes were all well and fine for blending in, but his own were much more comfortable.

"Hey!" Ryou called, pulling Kisshu out of his musings. "Don't you have something to do?" Kisshu paused. "I will in a minute. Why did you take me with you?"

"Ichigo would be mad at me if I left you there. Now go already."

Kisshu inhaled sharply, berating himself. _Of course! What am I doing wasting time here?_

He nodded to Ryou and turning around, ran quickly to a deeper part of the park where the trees grew closer together. The last thing he needed was some human to discover him teleporting. Kisshu skidded to a stop, throwing up dead leaves and waved his hand expectantly to open a portal.

Only…Nothing happened.

He tried again, concentrating harder, but still nothing happened. "Damn it!" He cursed. Kisshu realised that his energy must have been leeched away by Deep Blue while he had been held captive.

_I need to see her. I need to explain._

He struck out with his fist in frustration, hissing in pain when his hand landed on the rough trunk of a close by tree. Kisshu just stared at his bloody knuckles uncomprehendingly. _I can't get to her. I might as well be only human. _Kisshu head snapped up and he smiled knowingly. Only human…

He ran out of the forest and past the entrance to the park, pausing only to check the mental map he had created to find Ichigo's house. It didn't matter if he couldn't teleport. Going by foot took longer but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered but the one thought, and within that thought a purpose, that his mind was burning into his body.

_I'm coming, Ichigo. I'm coming. Just wait for me. _

* * *

**There, that's chapter 5. How was it? I hope you all liked it. The next (and final) chapter will have an overdose of Ichigo x Kisshu fluff at the end, and and things will get a bit...heated inbetween, so be prepared. **

**Please review so the characters forgive me for making them do things that they wouldn't dream of doing on their own. *Ryou smiling sheepishly*. Now **_**that**_** is something I will definitely have to be forgiven for. ^_^**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey, everyone. This is the sixth and final chapter of this story. I'm so sad! T.T ... It feels like the end of an era. Luckily, I'm already planning my next fic. ^_^ **

**So, please enjoy chapter six...**

* * *

Kisshu ran all the way to Ichigo's house, not caring that his lungs were burning in protest or that there might be humans on the street. He slowed as he approached the house, leaping through the window and landing softly on all fours as he realised Ichigo was in the room. He stood and let out a breath he hadn't realised he was holding, but he wasn't sure whether it was in relief or disappointment. She was asleep; head tilted back, surrounded by open textbooks and printed worksheets. She looked much younger than when she was awake – much more vulnerable. Someone like that couldn't possibly have all the hate against him that Deep Blue had tried to persuade him of. A shadow passed over the sun and the room was briefly plunged into darkness. The temperature dropped and Kisshu involuntary saw himself back at base, when Deep Blue was 'talking' to him.

The shimmering form summoned the static screen and it flickered to life. "Look at her," Deep Blue's voice whispered. Kisshu had tried to ignore it but he couldn't control anything as his eyes followed the screen. "She's living out her normal life, just as she wanted. She looks so very happy without you."  
"How long has it been?" Kisshu knew that time did not flow at the same speed in different dimensions.

"Much longer than you'd like."

The screen flickered again and Ichigo was sharing an Ice-cream with Aoyama. "But see – that human you hate so much. She smiles with him, because she has no room left in her heart for you."

_Could it be true? Might she have gone back to him? Or maybe she never intended to leave. _

He stared at the image hungrily, trying to see every little detail, anything to prove his suspicions wrong. Was he imagining that her smile looked just a little sadder than normal?

Deep Blue's voice was quiet, but icy. "There is, and never was any room for you in her life. Finally, now you're gone she can move on and live. Her world fell apart when you were in it and now that you're gone, she can put the pieces back together."

Kisshu finally managed to tear his eyes away from the screen. "Haven't you got anything better to do?"

"You're never going to be like her. You are entirely different. Don't you remember you purpose for coming to this place?"

Kisshu paused. He had come to wipe the earth of everyone who was on it. "But that's not why I'm here now. Things have changed. _I've_ changed." He defended his cause. His new cause.

"So you have abandoned your origins and your people." The shimmering form seemed to smile. "I wonder if you have learnt it yet."

"Learnt what?" Kisshu asked irritably.

"That you will die alone because the emotion you call love is your weakness."

"Well then leave me to die in peace." He retorted, but thought _Just leave the screen up. Please. _

Deep Blue vanished, and as if he'd heard Kisshu's wish the screen was left where it had appeared.

It flickered and Ichigo was alone in a park. The sun glinted off her face, and it took a second for him to realise she was crying. _Damn it!_ He let his fingertips brush the surface of the screen, hoping that she would somehow feel his presence, and know he was trying to comfort her.

Then the scene had changed again. Ichigo was looking into the eyes of the human, his hands caressing her face, leaning closer until their lips touched. Last time he had witnessed this, it had made his blood burn. This time, the rage had gone; leaving a cold, dull emptiness. Kisshu shut his eyes and turned away.

He had seen enough.

Ichigo stirred when the clouds passed the sun and the soft afternoon light shone into the room. Kisshu blinked as he could see the present again, and the past faded back into his memories.

She moved like a sleepwalker, unsteadily sitting up and reaching out her arm to him_. What Deep Blue said is only part of the past._ He thought. "Kisshu?" She said, her voice trembling as she stood.

"Yes?"

Suddenly Ichigo's whole body jerked as he spoke, and her eyes became very focused. She seemed to have come out of her trance, bowing her head to the floor, hair covering her eyes.

Her arm moved faster than Kisshu had thought possible, catching him on his right cheek, snapping his head to the side. Kisshu put a hand to his stinging cheek as he looked at Ichigo and flinched – from her blazing eyes more than the pain.

"Oh no. _Hell _no. No way do you get to walk in here after you just disappeared like that. How _could_ you? Or maybe you're just back to gloat." She finished coldly.

Kisshu looked at her, confused. "I came as quickly as I could, and I'm..." He trailed off as she glared at him, eyes dark and clouded.

She paused, regarding him more calmly. "You're a great liar. You had me convinced, you know. You really did." Ichigo drew in a ragged breath that didn't match her indifferent expression, and her eyes cleared for the briefest second. She was hurting, big time. "Are you done? I have work to do." She turned her head away.

Kisshu mouth opened and closed without any sound. "Done?" He said abstractedly. "Ichigo…What happened?" _It has to be part of the past._

"Don't give me that!" She snapped, and Kisshu stepped back, as if pushed by her voice. Ichigo was looking at him like he was a stranger... One she hated. It unnerved him to hear the venom in her hushed voice.

"You know exactly what happened. You and all your lies. You're not sorry. You couldn't have cared _less. _I was just a_ tool _to get you what you wanted_. _So don't tell me you're sorry when it was all just a lie."

"I don't understand-" Kisshu began but was interrupted almost instantly

"Let me tell you what I don't understand." Ichigo said, her icy demeanour breaking into a thousand pieces, letting the emotion flow out. "I don't understand why you said you loved me then disappeared, leaving others to do your dirty work. I don't get why you're here now and I don't know why my stupid heart won't stop hurting!"

Kisshu felt paralysed, like he was trapped in a nightmare, as he watched her sit on the bed and turn away from him, wiping her eyes angrily. "Do you have _any_ idea of how long I spent waiting for you? How I couldn't tell anyone why I was crying because they wouldn't believe me? All because of you."

"I think it's best if I go." He said hollowly. He let his hope go too, holding on only with the edges of his fingertips. _It's now. It's not just in the past. It's all true._ What Deep Blue had said. She didn't need him anymore, and even him just being there was hurting her. That was... he'd deal with it when he had time to sort through everything. He turned away and was about to try a portal, not caring if he didn't have enough power, when Ichigo suddenly said "Don't go! Please, don't go."

Kisshu stopped, wide eyed. _She… _He felt every muscle freeze, as if one move would make Deep Blue's taunting come true.

"I was so worried," she whispered, so quietly Kisshu almost didn't hear. "And so confused. I didn't know what I'd done to make you hate me so much you'd just leave."

"I would never leave you, not on purpose." Kisshu replied softly, walking towards her, wanting to close the gap between them completely, but he didn't want to risk scaring her.

"But you did." Ichigo's voice was laden with accusations.

"I was taken away." Kisshu explained, not wanting to go in to too much detail.

"You were _what?_" Ichigo demanded, turning around so Kisshu could see her face at last.

"Slightly captive, but that doesn't matter now." He said quickly.

Ichigo ran up and hugged him, startling Kisshu slightly." Oh, I'm so sorry!" she said after she'd let go, brushing her fingertips over the reddish patch on his cheek. Kisshu was suddenly reminded of how he'd touched the screen at the base when it had shown her crying. "Don't worry about it," He said. "I heal quickly."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed for a second. "Did they hurt you?" She asked.

"Huh? No, not at all." Kisshu replied, only slightly bending the truth. While it was true that beyond throwing him against the wall, Deep Blue had not physically hurt him in any other way. Psychologically however, Kisshu reckoned it would be a very long time before he could stand in the same dimension with Deep Blue and not be tearing him to pieces for all the hours he spent trying to persuade him that everything he had felt was a lie.

"How did you hurt your hand then?" Ichigo said, lightly grazing her fingers over his bruised knuckles. Or rather, bruised and cut, because he had skinned his knuckles on a piece of granite back at base... how long ago was it? Anyway, on top of that, Kisshu had punched the tree with the same hand so there were both just-healing cuts and new bruises. It made sense that she would wonder how the half-healed wounds had got that way.

"Oh..." Kisshu felt embarrassed, and decided to tell her only about the most recent injury to his hands. "My powers had been...siphoned off which left me powerless like a human-" He caught a sharp glance from Ichigo and added "Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I had to get to you as fast as I could and since I couldn't teleport I had to walk...um, run. So I got a bit frustrated and I, uh, took it out on a tree. I mean, I had to see you and explain..." Kisshu realised he was babbling and promptly closed his mouth, cutting off the stream of words that were starting to sound incredibly corny. He glanced up at Ichigo who was smiling sadly. "What is it?" He asked.

"I knew it! I knew he was wrong." Ichigo said.

"You've lost me."

"Ryou-san."

Kisshu disguised a grimace as a concerned frown.

"He said you'd stolen the-"

"The Mew Aqua, right?" Kisshu finished for her.

"How did you know?" Ichigo said, staring at him incredulously.

"I just talked to him."

"You've seen him? Where? When?" Her expression went from sad to intrigued.

After a second's thought Kisshu realised that Ryou had been missing for over two weeks. She was bound to be worried.

"He's back now, but don't give him too hard a time. I'm sure he said what he thought would protect you." The guy had gotten him out of that prison, so Kisshu thought it was only fair to help him out a little in return.

Ichigo looked relieved, and then once that had passed, more than a little suspicious. "You're sticking up for Ryou-san?" She asked, reaching up and resting her cool hand on his forehead. "Nope, you're not sick." She took her hand back. "I'm glad though."

"Yeah, me too." He caught her hand and held it in his. "I think we have to-" Suddenly he stopped, glancing at her bedroom door. "Someone's coming." Kisshu said quietly, letting her hand drop and took a quick mental inventory. He thought he might just have enough power to teleport a short distance.

He stood and walked to the other side of the room.

"Why are you going?" Ichigo said, panicked.

Kisshu grinned. She was so cute, at totally the wrong moment. "You know I wouldn't leave you, but what would your parents think if they found a person they'd only met once sitting unannounced in your room?"

Ichigo blushed slightly. "Ah. Good point."

"Don't worry, I'll just be outside." Kisshu waved his hand and, sure enough, a portal appeared.

"'Kay." Ichigo nodded as he stepped into it and the portal sealed itself just behind him. Not long after, someone knocked on Ichigo's door. "Ichigo? Can I come in?" Her mum's voice wafted through.

"Yeah, sure."

Sakura came in with a basket of laundry in her arms, probably the ones she had made Ichigo's father dry the night before. Ichigo smiled and leant against her pillows as her mum sat on her bed. "You looked flushed, Ichigo. Are you ok?" Ichigo put a hand to her face. "I'm fine."

"Then what's that for?" Her mum's change of tone made the smile drop from her face instantly. Ichigo only then realised she had used her bandaged arm, the one Pai had slashed. For some reason, the wound had taken much longer to heal than a normal cut would, even of that size, and a scar was just beginning to form. She had managed to hide it pretty well…until now, that is.

"Um… a cut?" Ichigo answered nonchalantly, hoping to lead her mum of the scent by acting as if it were an everyday, obvious thing.

"Please don't insult my intelligence." Sakura frowned, and Ichigo looked down at her hands. _No such luck. Think...think..._

"I ran into a door and I guess there must've been splinters in it…" Ichigo mumbled to the floor. _A DOOR? Why? She's going to see straight through that! No, no, why did I have to say a door? I'm going to get grounded for life...and probably be covered in bubble-wrap. Me-sized bubble-wrap. A door? Just why?_ When she looked up from her mental panicking, expecting shouting at the very least, she was surprised to see her mother's expression had relaxed. "Oh…" Sakura started to smile. "I see."

_Yay! I didn't think she'd believe me!_ She cheered on the inside. On the outside, Ichigo sighed exasperatedly, overdoing the theatrics slightly. "I knew you'd laugh. I'm such a klutz, and it just kind of happened."

Sakura gave up trying to hide her smile and kissed Ichigo's forehead."Ok, sweetie."

The smile slid off her face guilty as her mum walked out of the room.

_I have got to stop lying. _Ichigo started mechanically sorting through the clothes. A shirt… some trousers… socks… why were her shoelaces in the washing pile? Anyway...jumpers...Kisshu…

"You're back!" Ichigo exclaimed happily, dropping the clothes in her hands and shoving the folded ones into her cupboard. She had only belatedly noticing his figure that she saw from the corner of her eyes. Kisshu had just appeared by her window. Unfortunately, he looked deadly serious. "What actually happened to your arm?" He asked carefully as she sat back on the bed.

Ichigo cringed. _Okay then. _

"How did you know? And it was a door-" Ichigo stopped mid-sentence as Kisshu seemed to vanish then re-appear right in front of her, one leg folded beneath him on the bed, the other still on the carpet. His fingers reached out and brushed her cheek and his gold eyes stared at her intently. "I thought you wouldn't want to lie to me. The window was open so I heard everything, and no door could have needed a bandage like that." She caught the sadness in his voice.

"I don't want to lie to you." Ichigo protested faintly.

Kisshu leaned back and folded his other leg so he was sitting on the bed crossed legged, right opposite Ichigo.

"Then what happened?"

Ichigo closed her eyes. She found it difficult to think straight when he was so close. Sadly, it made it easier to remember how Pai had started to break her heart with a few words. "The day after you took me to the lake, we were attacked by a chimera animal."

"So that's what did this to you?" Kisshu said, and Ichigo heard the faint trace of relief that it was nothing worse. Ichigo opened her eyes and slowly began to undo the bandage. "Not quite." She said, as the last layer came free and Ichigo flexed her arm and bit her lip as Kisshu stared at it unblinkingly. "No…That's impossible." Suddenly his voice was as hard as diamond and his eyes were just as cold as he recognised a slash made by his own weapons. Kisshu briefly remembered that his swords had disappeared after his surprise attack on Deep Blue, so it was in fact possible.

"Who did this to you?" He said quietly.

"It wasn't anyone's fault... my reflexes were slow and-"

"I'm not asking whose fault it was, Ichigo." Kisshu interrupted. "I'm asking who did this to you."

Ichigo didn't want to get Kisshu hurt because of her, or fight with anyone, but... "Pai." She whispered. "He had your swords… that's why I thought you'd told him to do it."

"That's also what you meant by 'sending others to do my work'." He said stiffly, taking her hands in his. Ichigo was surprised – his hands felt gentle and warm, a complete contradiction to his voice. Which one was what he really felt?

Kisshu traced patterns on her hand with his fingers and Ichigo started to think of how many hours she had spent wishing she had never met him when in fact... now he was back she wanted little more than to curl up in his arms and stay there forever.

Her mobile seemed to have other ideas, and its loud ring made them both jump. Kisshu laughed as he almost fell of her bed and Ichigo had to grab his hand to stop him from tumbling over the edge.

Ichigo reached over to her bag with her spare hand and checked the glowing screen.

**1 Text Message from Aoyama Masaya **

Ichigo sighed and leant against the headboard of the bed as she snapped the phone shut without even reading the text. "Here we go again." She muttered, closing her eyes.

"What's wrong, kitten? More returning admirers?" Kisshu teased good-naturedly, and Ichigo seriously considered that all the guys in her life were psychic. First it was Ryou, and then Kisshu...maybe she was just like an open book: way too easy to read.

"Uh, something like that."

"Oh." Kisshu's voice dropped and she felt the bed shift as he got up. "You spent a lot of time around that human when I wasn't around, didn't you?"

_Wow, he got to the point fast. _"Yes."

"Do you love him?" Kisshu asked, and sounded as if he were considering something.

"No… I did, but I don't now." Ichigo was startled into explaining herself.

"Do you love me?"

Ichigo couldn't help but smile. _What a question._ "Of course I do."

"Then," She heard his voice much closer than the last time. "That's good enough for me."

"You're… kind of sweet when you're jealous."

"Say what?"

Ichigo opened her eyes in time to catch Kisshu's affronted expression. "Guys are _not _sweet. And I'm not jealous of that runt." He added quickly.

Ichigo grinned. "I believe you." She was going to tease him for a bit longer but then her dad called up. "Ichigo!"

She sat bolt upright, calling back "Coming!"

"I'll guess I'll see you…" Ichigo hesitated. _I won't even know where he will be. _

Kisshu saw her expression and smiled reassuringly. "I'll come to you, and I'm not planning on going back to _them_, so don't worry." He gently pressed his thumb against the lines on her forehead. "Frowns don't suit you, so you shouldn't worry and just smile."

She knew _them_ meant Deep Blue and the others. "Bye." She got up and walked to the door, and when she turned back to ask where he would be staying she saw that Kisshu was already gone and the breeze from the open window was ruffling the curtains.

/ / /

"How was your evening?" Kisshu asked, not even trying to hide the smile that Ichigo's startled expression bought to his lips.

"I don't care if you can teleport everywhere - you still need to learn to knock!" Ichigo chastised half-heartedly.

Kisshu shook his head. "Sorry, that's out of my league."

"Right."

Ichigo started to dig around in her wardrobe, and wasn't surprised to find Kisshu leaning over her shoulder. "Looking for something?" he asked.

Ichigo smiled. "Only my sanity. Although tomorrow's New Years day, and I saved this one kimono especially for the festival, but I can't find it."

"What's the New year's festival?"

Ichigo paused in her searching. "You'd make a terrible spy. What happened to 'know your enemy'?" Kisshu laughed and held his hands up in a mock surrender. "You got me with that one. I did learn a lot of stuff, but nothing interesting."

Ichigo went back to browsing, explaining the things she'd been taught for years as she dug through clothes she hadn't even realised she still had.

"New Year's day is when we say goodbye to the past year and welcome the New Year. It's a time to think about what we want to do in the future, and how to get there. We pray for good luck and happiness, and we celebrate by getting everyone together and having fun." Ichigo pulled out a pink kimono and smiled. "I wore this to greet the New Year about four years ago. Anyway," She carried on, folding the older kimono carefully and putting it to one side. "It only happens once a year so it's a big thing. There's a lot of things to look out for too – all the festival foods and one of my favourite 'firsts' of the New Year is '_Hatsuhinode'_, or 'the first sunrise'. It looks so...beautiful."

Kisshu had been listening intently. "Do you mind if I come?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I come to the New Years festival with you?"

"Sure, if you want to." Ichigo said. Kisshu nodded and took her hand. "I want to learn all the new things, everything I missed because we were fighting. I want to know everything."

Ichigo stared at him. This was a new side to him – the inquisitive side. She kissed him lightly then smiled and walked across the room. Only, Kisshu held on to her hand.

"I don't think that's enough for today," he said, resting his hands either side of her on the wall, and his arms formed a kind of barrier. His eyes seemed to darken slightly. "You were right earlier. I was jealous. I have a right to be though." He reached down, and with his fingertips brushed the mark on her leg that set her apart from others as a Mew Mew. It burned for a second then the pain went away. "That is who you are. You shouldn't have to be with humans who don't understand you, humans you have to hide who you truly are from." Ichigo knew he was thinking of one human in particular and said "I know that, Kisshu. That's why I'm here, with you." "I haven't seen you properly in months, while he has. I've missed you." "I've missed you too." "Prove it to me." She stood and pulled him forward when he stepped in unexpectedly at the same time, backing her up against the wall and pinning her hands there so she couldn't move. Ichigo found her pulse racing and titled her head back as his lips touched hers and this time they were insistent and not at all hesitant. He let her hands drop, cupped her face with one hand and slid the other behind her without breaking the kiss.

Ichigo felt shivers running up and down her body. They had never been...this close. She could feel his heart beating in his chest, and he must've felt her shivers because he pulled apart slightly and stared at her for a few seconds. His eyes were so bright they seemed to be almost on fire, and his voice was very low. "What is it?" he whispered, eyes focusing on her. "Did that feel bad?" Ichigo stood still, trapped between the boy she loved and a hard wall and as she looked into those eyes she realised something. "No... It felt too good." _I want him_. He laughed softly and rested his forehead on hers, emerald against ruby. "Nothing could ever be too good for you." He said, brushing a wisp of hair way from her face and let his fingers stay in a soft caress, tracing her cheeks and sliding down to her mouth. Ichigo felt more alive now than she ever had before – she was aware of every tiny sound, of every movement and of how his hips were pressed against hers, their chests so close and their lips – burning with a white hot desire. She leant in, tilted her head and closed her eyes –

"Eeep!"

- Only to somehow slip on something and end up flying sideways onto the bed, pulling Kisshu down with her. They landed in a tangled mess of legs and bed covers, Kisshu landing after her, half of him leaning on her, propping himself up with his hands after he got his balance back.

Ichigo peered upside down over the edge of the bed. "Found the culprit!" She announced. "I tripped over my shoes." Kisshu grinned down at her. "Only you," He said, shaking his head. "But I must admit that I don't mind at all." Ichigo realised that they were very close indeed, and felt almost out of her depth. Having a guy pretty much on top of her was ... Ichigo lost her train of thought as Kisshu pressed her into the bed, moving his legs so he was straddling her and kissed her, tugging gently on her bottom lip. On an impulse, Ichigo threw her arms around his neck, kissing him back with equal intensity until she felt the covers beneath her go taught. She realised Kisshu had been leaning his weight onto the bed and was now clenching his hands into fists on the covers. Ichigo let her arms drop and he broke the kiss and moved his head so his cheek was resting by hers. Her eyes went wide as he let out a low, almost pained, moan. "Damn. How is it," He breathed, "that you know exactly what to do to me?" "Because I'd do anything for you." Ichigo said simply. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest and knew how fast his heart was beating. She could only assume her own was racing just as fast. Kisshu half wished for a distraction before he went too far and did something he might regret, and half wanted to go right ahead.

All of a sudden he was on the other side of the room, and Ichigo flinched as cold air came rushing towards her where he had been. "Someone's coming." Kisshu said quietly, looking away. "Aren't they always," Ichigo muttered somewhat breathlessly, sitting up. Kisshu felt a small smile slip onto his face and looked up. "Feel free to consider getting a lock, but I'd better go." Ichigo sat up properly and nodded. "Bye." Only seconds later her dad came into the room. "Ichigo, do you want to get your kimono ready for tomorrow?" He asked, and then glanced suspiciously around the room. "Sure. Um... what are you looking for?" She asked, hoping her cheeks weren't as flushed as they felt. Ichigo wasn't sure whether she should feel happy or confused, but it seemed happy was winning at the moment. "I thought I heard another person's voice in here..." Ichigo swallowed and plastered a big, fake smile on her face and linked her arm through her dad's. "It's just me. So where did you put the kimono's?" Ichigo closed the door firmly behind her, wondering what exactly had just happened, and also what her dad might have said if he knew exactly who she was talking to, and doing what.

/ / /

Ryou put his book to one side and stared at him phone as it blinked red. Too fast to be low battery. It meant something was seriously wrong. He bolted downstairs to the computer, clicking his tongue as it took a while to load up. He tapped in what his phone was showing, and his eyes were a blur as he read the screen over and over, trying to make sense of it. No seriously wrong… just very different.

"How on earth…?" he muttered. He highlighted part of the data and a picture showed on screen. It was a Mew mark… Ichigo's by the look of it. Only, it had turned a deep gold, and had morphed so it had a band of gold going around her leg, linking with a new, second mark that looked like a small fire.

Ryou sat back in his chair and laughed. Of all the people, Ichigo had broken the barrier. She had just doubled the powers of her own team, and also broke through the safeguard that meant all of the girls would only be Mew Mews as long as Kisshu was around. She could stop being a Mew Mew whenever she chose.

He laughed again, then stopped abruptly as he realised just how her mark had gotten that way. He shook his head, not wanting to go in that direction of thought. Ryou sent a quick text to Keiichiro, explaining what had happened and asking if he saw the girls, to tell them the news. He was about to go back to his book when an idea struck him. He walked to a mirror and pulled his collar away from his neck. His mark had turned golden too. Ryou was speechless. _A Mew Mew and an alien, _He thought_. We might just beat them yet. And… finish the work that you started. _He sent a promise to his parents._ We'll beat them. _

_/ / / _

"Mmnmph." Ichigo mumbled as her alarm went off, swatting at it with her hand until she knocked it off the table and had to resort to poking it quiet with a clothes hanger she found lurking on the floor. After dozing for a few more minutes, Ichigo got up and stretched sleepily. _Why did I set my alarm?_ She wondered groggily, squinting at her retrieved clock. It was 10 in the evening... why would she have a nap so late and set an alarm? Suddenly she remembered and threw open the curtains, leaning on the windowsill to let in the moonlight and a cool breeze. _Because it's New Years Eve._ She smiled contentedly. _And I'm going with my family, and Kisshu._ But first, there were still some things to do. Ichigo got dressed and clambered downstairs, noticing all the New Year's charms that hung around the house, readjusting a few of them on her way down.

"You know, Japan didn't always celebrate New Years on the 31 December or the first day of January." Shintaro began to explain, after Ichigo had sat down in the living room.

"Really? What about Sanga-Nichi?" Ichigo asked about the first three days of January, mildly curious.

Her dad nodded. "Oh, we still celebrated it, but it was more like the Chinese New Year, until we changed to the Gregorian calendar in 1873. That was just after the Meji restoration and the games played and the poetry said originated from-"

At this point, Ichigo had realised that this wasn't going to be a short explanation and she let her mind wander.

_New Year's really is fun. I wonder who I'll see at the festival? Pudding might be there, with all her little brothers and sisters...Zakuro's probably busy, even today...Mint would probably find it too common... Lettuce will be there, I think. _Ichigo sat up straighter. _Ryou-san is back too! _Ichigo's shoulders slumped, unnoticed by her dad. _Deep Blue... everything bad revolves around him. If there's some way, any way at all to solve this without hurting anybody... _The more Ichigo thought about it, the more she realised that the only idea would be for Kisshu to go back to Deep Blue and somehow convince him to stop attacking them.

There was a faint noise in the background, but Ichigo ignored it, too busy thinking. It happened again, and she realised her dad had stopped talking and had gotten up to go to the door. Ichigo abruptly stood up and ran, overtaking her dad and opening the door to reveal a certain green haired, _human_ teenager.

"Hey." He smiled. "You…" His eyes widened as he took in the soft, peach coloured Kimono. It was how the thin pink–blue spiral patterns covering the majority of the fabric brought out the shine in her eyes and the happiness in her smile. The obi had the outlines of dozens of falling cherry blossoms, and went perfectly with the real cherry blossom Ichigo had pinned to her hair. "You look amazing."

"Thanks." She murmured, blushing slightly. "I always liked wearing Kimono's to greet the New Year."

"That's one Earth custom I could definitely get used to." He said, pulling her into his arms. They heard a cough behind them and Ichigo froze in his arms, and then quickly ducked out of them as her father came out of the door.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything." He said pointedly.

Ichigo cringed. She had forgotten he had been right behind her. "Hi dad. Didn't see you there." "So I gathered." Her dad replied dryly, and with one quick look at Sakura, who had also come to see who was at the door and was holding everyone's coats, turned and walked towards the town centre where the shrine was. Ichigo sighed and felt as if her dad would be peeking behind him the whole way there.

When the group got to the shrine, Sakura gently pulled Shintaro by the arm away from spying on his daughter and smiled at Ichigo. "Be good, and don't get lost, ok? We'll meet back here..." She checked her watch.

"...In a few hours. Our phones are on if you need to contact us." She started to walk towards the centre of the square and Ichigo laughed as she heard her father say "But we shouldn't leave them-"

"You should trust Ichigo more, and-" her mother said, but Ichigo couldn't hear the rest of the sentence because they had already moved out of hearing distance.

"Your father is very protective of you." Kisshu commented. Ichigo sighed. "Yup." She agreed, thinking of how her dad had treated her last boyfriend – he had challenged Aoyama-kun to a kendo match. Thinking of it, she was sure her dad didn't think of Kisshu as her boyfriend otherwise... forget kendo, he'd probably challenge Kisshu to a duel with sharpened swords... Kisshu called her attention back to the present.

"Hey, I think there's someone you want to talk to over there." He motioned with his hand to a tall, blonde person talking animatedly to a long-haired brunette.

"Keiichiro-san and Ryou-san!" Ichigo exclaimed as she recognised them. "He's back!" She said, suddenly feeling warmth blossom in her chest, and a sense of relief. "Come on then," Kisshu said, walking ahead with a small smile. "I thought you had words to say to him." Ichigo nodded and caught up with Kisshu as Ryou turned round, and frowned at her. "Oh. Hi."

"What kind of a greeting is that after disappearing for two _weeks_?" Ichigo exclaimed. "Calm down," he said, waving his hands at her. "And I'm not going to apologise, so stop looking at me like that. Anyway, it's not like intended to go for that long."

Ichigo opened her mouth, probably to give Ryou an ear-full, but Keiichiro cut in. "It's ok. I've already given him a lecture, Ichigo-san." He said, smiling wryly. Ryou sighed. "While I was there, I did manage to do something that will help you two." He motioned to Kisshu and Ichigo. "I trapped Deep Blue in a smaller version of that 'mystical holding cell' for a while when I got us out." Ryou explained. "So we have time to figure something out. Maybe we can even make this thing work. Although," He added to Ichigo, looking Kisshu up and down with a mild suspicion showing in his eyes. "You'd better keep an eye on this one."

"I will." Ichigo smiled as Kisshu took her hand and squeezed it. Ryou shook his head and with a brief wave behind him, he walked back to Keiichiro and he was soon lost in the crowd.

"Sheesh, how much can that fluffy thing do?" Kisshu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"His name is Masha." Ichigo automatically corrected him.

"Huh." He wrinkled his nose, making a link. "Any relation to the human?"

Ichigo looked to the side. "Not anymore." Kisshu smiled slightly, and Ichigo pulled him by the hand to go and look at all the stalls selling food. "Ooh, look! Toffee apples!" Ichigo bought two, handing one to Kisshu and laughed as he stared at apprehensively before taking a bite.

"Hey!" Someone called out to them, before Ichigo had even begun to eat her own apple.

Ichigo looked for the source of the voice and found it in a boy with dark hair and chocolate eyes who was running up behind them.

"Hello, Aoyama-kun. How are you?" Ichigo said.

Aoyama smiled. "I'm good. But hey, can I talk to you for a minute?" He motioned to a quieter spot a few yards away from the hustle and bustle of the stalls.

"Sure. What about?" Ichigo walked ahead automatically. Kisshu lagged behind, frowning in concentration.

"I-"

"Get away from her." Kisshu interrupted suddenly through clenched teeth, pulling Ichigo behind him.

"Huh?"

"I said get the hell away from her!" He hissed, materialising and drawing his swords.

"Kisshu, don't!" Ichigo yelled, running in front of him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"You don't know what he was thinking about you just now."

"And you do?" She countered, aware of Aoyama's curious stare.

Kisshu nodded sharply, never taking his eyes off Aoyama. Well, he couldn't read thoughts as such; he just got the general gist of them. But he still didn't like one bit of what the human was thinking.

_Not good._ Ichigo thought. "Let me handle this, Kisshu." She said. When he remained where he was, she put her hands on his chest and pushed him back gently. "And put those swords away!" She added. Kisshu begrudgingly did so and retreated a few steps.

Ichigo turned back to Aoyama-kun and saw he was running a hand through his dark hair. "What is it you need to talk to me about?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah." Aoyama glanced warily at Kisshu. "I think we should just be friends. And by the look on that guy's face I don't think I'm the only one who thinks so."

Kisshu just glared at him, his gold eyes no less beautiful for the anger in them.

"So I'll see you round?" Aoyama said to Ichigo who just nodded blankly and waved as he left.

_Probably to the shrine._ She was brought out of her reverie by Kisshu muttering. "He should've been begging for your forgiveness…"

"Kisshu, it's ok. Honestly." Ichigo said. _I mean, I feel kind of numb, sure, but wasn't supposed to be the one to tell him first? _

"There is no way he _ever_ deserved you." Kisshu spat. "That son of a bitch was going out with some other girl, and just stringing you along. Tearing him apart wouldn't be good enough."

"What did you say?" Ichigo asked in a small voice. _Aoyama-kun was…what?_

Kisshu immediately went from angry to contrite when he saw Ichigo's expression. "I… I'm sorry." He said, covering the distance between them and pulled her into a hug. "Sorry. I didn't realise…I guess you didn't want to be told like that." He pulled back a little and peered at her face. "You ok?"

"Yeah. I mean, yes, I'm fine."

Kisshu hated the scrawny human even more as he swallowed back his jealously. That other guy still managed to wedge his way in the middle of them. "Okay!" Kisshu announced, thinking quickly. "I've got a surprise for you, but you'll have to wait a few hours."

"A surprise?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Uh huh. Now c'mon, didn't you say something about how the food here _isn't_ completely strange?" Ichigo smiled as she defended earth-style food while showing Kisshu how New Year's worked, explaining about the traditions linked to fortunes being told by people dressed as shrine maidens and the Kimono's colours and styles having different meanings.

They eventually got to the shrine, Ichigo prayed for the normal things like good health for her family and good things for the future, and deep inside, in no more than a whisper she gave thanks to the Gods for letting her become a Mew Mew. Without that, she would never had met any of the girls, or discovered Ryou's nice (if slightly strange) side and Keiichiro's amazing cooking. She would never have found Kisshu. Ichigo closed her eyes and felt her prayers float up with the burning incense.

She glanced sideways at Kisshu and started as she saw his whole body shimmer, and for a split-second she saw his half-top and elfish ears before he reverted back to his human self. "Um, Kisshu, you... you shimmered...back to yourself." Kisshu froze and looked down quickly. _Crap._ He thought. "I can't keep this up for too long."

"Its fine, go."

Kisshu let out a breath. "Thanks. Ah - wait a sec." He quickly scrawled on a piece of paper, folded it, and gave it to her. "Read this when you're at home. I'll have everything sorted out by then."

"Sorted?" Ichigo asked.

"For your surprise, remember?" Throwing a grin behind him, he walked into the shadows of a nearby tree and transported. Ichigo blinked slowly. _What kind of surprise is he planning? _She was itching to read the note, but resisted, stuffing it into her pocket instead.

Ichigo could hardly wait to get home. Her parents stayed in the kitchen while Ichigo excused herself and ran upstairs, hastily unfolding the note.

**_Look in your wardrobe. K_**

A few seconds later Ichigo was pulling a square box out from her wardrobe, and another note pinned to it. She leaned in to read it.

**_Yes, I did break-and-enter illegally, but it was for Part 1 of your surprise – I hope you like it. I'll pick you up at 3am for the second part._**

Ichigo glanced at the clock. It was half two. That left her with only half an hour to get ready for… she didn't even know what. _First a swimming trip to a lake and now…?_

She took a second look at the box that the note had been attached to. It was about two feet long each way, with a blue ribbon tied diagonally around it, a bow resting on the lid. She tentatively undid it and opened the box. "Oh my God." Ichigo breathed. Inside was the most beautiful dress she'd ever seen. Ichigo pulled it out of the box and stared. It was silk, a delicate carnation pink.

The floor-length dress had a cut that was subtle and the sleeves cut off at an angle at the elbows, ending in loose ruffles. At the waist it split into two sections, with a darker shade down the middle, and intricate patterns weaved into the edges, like hundreds of wings sown in silver, joined tip-to-tip. Ichigo shook her head and re-read the note. This couldn't possibly be for her – it must've cost a fortune!

But no, the dress was for her, and Ichigo took off her casual clothes, and put the dress on, feeling like a princess in a fairytale. She looked…stunning. Ichigo had never really seen it before, but the dress seemed to make her shine.

"Hiya." A voice accompanied the arms around her waist.

Ichigo smiled. "Hello Kisshu."

Kisshu looked offended. "What? So I can't sneak up on you any more?"

Ichigo held the notes between two fingers. "We really must stop meeting like this." She joked.

"But that takes all the fun out of everything." Kisshu replied. He held her at arms length to admire the dress. "It suits you."

Ichigo smiled. "I love it. Thank you." She couldn't find the right words for her gratitude, and simple seemed to work the best. She realised he wasn't wearing his usual attire either. He had replaced it for long dark trousers, and a white shirt that was unbuttoned at the top. It made him look older…

Kisshu winked. "Don't thank me now. I wasn't sure how cold it would be tonight so…"

Ichigo shook his head. "The dress is beautiful, and has long sleeves so I will be fine. Stop worrying."

"Are you ready to go then? We're teleporting, by the way. Earth transport is too slow."

Ichigo hit him lightly on the arm and Kisshu told her to hold on tight. She quickly tied on her shoes and looped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. Teleporting didn't scare her, but she wasn't about to open her eyes while travelling really fast.

Kisshu looked down at the girl in his arms with a kindness in his eyes that would have been felt by a blind person. Deep Blue was wrong. He would never understand that the bonds that tied him to Ichigo were made of stronger things than he could comprehend. She was his only weakness, at least on the Earth. Kisshu held her tight as he summoned the portal, only letting go after they had landed at their destination.

It had taken a bit of work to fix everything properly, and he had been lucky. If any human's had been wandering by, they would have seen a green-haired alien flitting from place to place more than thirty feet in the air carrying wires. It would have been hard to explain that. Luckily, everything had stayed in its place and there were no wires to be seen anywhere.

"Kisshu, what is all of this?" Ichigo had opened her eyes and let go. She was looking around with a slightly bewildered expression.

The carpet had faded, and been replaced with soft green grass, and they were surrounded by the tallest pine tree's she had ever seen. They seemed to touch the sky, and become part of the scattered light from the stars.

"My gift to you. People give gifts to each other on New Years, right?"

"Yes, but…" Ichigo wasn't too sure how to explain how the dress and this place were all much more than she deserved.

"But what?" Kisshu said taking her right hand and holding it, slipping his other hand around her waist, waiting for her as she hesitantly rested her other hand on his shoulder. "But this is far too much for me. I mean…"

"Stop worrying. Nothing good can ever be too much for you." Kisshu closed his eyes briefly and grinned when he opened them. Gentle music had started playing, and the stars in the sky seemed to have dimmed. He began a soft, classic ballroom dance, and soon they were covering the whole grassy expanse in sweeping circles and steps, Ichigo laughing in delight. "I didn't know you could dance!" She exclaimed, tilting her head back.

"I'm a fast learner. But," He admitted, "There's a lot to learn about your world."

"I could teach you." Ichigo offered.

"I'd like that. By the way, you're not scared of heights, are you?"

Ichigo looked at him curiously. "No." Not after all the times she had fought against them in the air.

Kisshu smiled and his eyes brightened in the faint light. "That's good, kitten," He said, standing still, taking her hands and clasping them tightly in his. "Now look around."

Ichigo did so and gasped. They were about twenty feet of the ground. The flowers looked little more than colourful patches on the green grass, and the stars looked much closer.

"How?" She mumbled. "How could you-"

"My home has technology that you haven't discovered how to use here. Now, I believe we were in the middle of something?"

Ichigo shook her head. "All the way up here? Not a chance. We'd fall. Or...worse."

Kisshu acted like he didn't hear her and raised her hand so she spun round, catching her at the last moment. "I will never let you fall." He whispered. "Never." He pulled her back up. "Now would you trust me?" Kisshu said in a normal voice.

Ichigo sighed, looking doubtfully at the ground far below them. "Fine. I trust you." She put her arms back round him, and they began to dance, in much slower and wider circles then they had on the ground. Ichigo suddenly felt a sense of Déjà vu – about when Kisshu has caught her in his arms. "That first day… you carried me home, didn't you?"

Kisshu nodded. "I could hardly leave you out in the middle of the street at night, could I?"

"I wouldn't have minded staying a little longer." She said. _I wouldn't have minded staying there all night_, she thought.

"You were half-asleep." Kisshu replied laughing. "I doubt you noticed."

"I was not!" She said indignantly.

Kisshu grinned. "You talk in your sleep, y'know."

"I do?"

"Yes." Kisshu nodded solemnly with total conviction.

Ichigo froze, already feeling a blush rise to her cheeks. "What…did I say?" She ran through her most bizarre dreams lately and wondered what exactly she'd said.

"You said…" Kisshu paused, and then shook his head. "No, I think I'll keep this to myself."

Ichigo took her hand out of his. That's not fair!" She complained.

"It certainly is," Kisshu justified smoothly. "Because if you were awake, then you'd remember exactly what you said."

Ichigo frowned at his teasing. "That's not fair and you know it."

Kisshu said nothing, and in the silence, Ichigo noticed the music had changed. It was softer, almost sweet.

The soft music made Ichigo smile, and she relented.

"Fine, you get that one. But you were wrong earlier you know." Ichigo pointed out.

"Oh? What about?" Kisshu asked, intrigued.

"When you said there was a lot to learn about my world."

"I think it's true."

"No, it's not. It's _our _world now."

"Always." He took her hand and kissed it, just like the first time outside the café.

There were a few moments where the music quietened down, and stopped completely. Ichigo looked around, confused.

Kisshu, on the other hand, glanced around with a degree of satisfaction. "Ah! It's just about time for the final part of my gift to you."

"What more could you possibly give to me?" She murmured.

Kisshu held her tight as they flew up further, and he stopped the branch of a tall aspen tree, one of the highest there. "Ladies first." He said, indicating the branch. Ichigo stepped down onto it, and told her to take a seat. "I can give you this."

As he spoke, the sun had peaked between the mountains, and its rays were just shining out, catching in the dew drops surrounding them, throwing rainbows of light everywhere.

Ichigo shielded her eyes with her hand as the soft light flew over the trees and valleys in front of them, smiling as she felt the warm brightness brush over her own face. Suddenly the whole meadow was in light, and the sky looked as if it had been painted with the finest brushes in oil paints. From gentle pinks to brazen oranges and just a tinge of blue, the sky seemed alive, with the colour of a summer flower and as much life.

Ichigo stretched out her hand to try and touch the sun, that source of light in the sky rimmed with gold.

Kisshu laughed softly and Ichigo snatched her hand back. She had almost forgotten he was there, and that she was a good twenty feet in the air. "It's beautiful." She said to him, looking at his kind eyes and handsome face.

"Yes," He replied. "You are." Kisshu kissed her once, twice and asked him softly to forgive him.

Ichigo hugged him fiercely and smiled. "There's nothing to forgive. You didn't go away on purpose, and you've given me so much." She rested her forehead against his. "I love you."

Kisshu had never heard sweeter sounding words, and whispered his reply onto sweeter lips.

"I love you. Forever."

"And yet you still won't tell me what I said in my sleep."

Kisshu grinned at her. "You said you always loved me."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "What's strange about that?"

"People can lie when they are awake, Ichigo. But no-one can ever lie, or be unsure of themselves when they're dreaming."

They sat in silence watching the sun rise, because there was no need for any more words.

* * *

**And that was the last chapter of this story. I hope you liked it! Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, Author alerted/ favourited or favourited this story. Oh, even if you didn't do any of that, thanks for reading anyway. **

**Lastly, thanks to the characters, and I'm sorry that I was mean to them at times, but that's just the way it had to be. '**_**sniff sniff'.**_

**Happy summer holiday's everyone! **


	7. Epilogue

**Hey. I know that I said the sixth chapter would the last, and that's what I thought it would be, but Rizu Neko-Chan asked a few good questions about the story, so I'll answer them in a Epilogue. I wasn't too sure how to answer such a wide range of topics in a story format, so for some questions, the characters will answer them, to tie up any loose ends. **

* * *

_What happens to Pai, Tart and Deep Blue?_

Pai's answer: Working with Deep Blue didn't show any positive confirmation that we were going to either successfully take over this earth or save our own. I believe switching sides would be more beneficial.

Taruto: Where Pai and Kisshu are, I am. It gets boring if I'm by myself.

Deep Blue: - - - - - - - -

Conclusion: Pai wasn't getting results, and heard that Ryou had new technology that could help save his world, so he went to Ryou and now their working together. Taruto just tagged along, and Deep Blue… Ryou will say he did this on purpose, but by a lucky accident, the holding cell he trapped Deep Blue in is actually permanent – Ryou didn't make a key. That's why Deep Blue didn't respond to his question, and won't be troubling anyone.

_Does Kisshu get his powers back?_

Yes, he does. Deep Blue was draining his powers in the holding cell, and now that he's escaped, the effect is wearing off. It took a week for his powers to get to full strength again.

Kisshu's answer: Of course I got my powers back. (Starts teleporting everywhere to prove it.)

_Ichigo's Mew mark – What's with that? _

When Kisshu touched Ichigo's Mew mark, he joined his power with hers because the touch was voluntarily accepted by both of them (as in, he didn't force her, and she didn't object). Both of their powers were doubled in strength, because they had joined on a power-link level. They don't share power; they share the ability to tap into a greater level of power.

Ichigo's Mew mark turned gold, to show this power increase, and as we saw, Ryou's did too. The other girls Mew marks also turned gold, but their power only doubled by two-thirds because they didn't personally join an alien on the power link level.

_What happened with the Mew Aqua?_

As we know, Kisshu was locked up when Pai said he was occupied with the Mew Aqua, so Pai was blatantly lying. The Mew Aqua is still out there, but both the Aliens and the Mew Mews have stopped looking for it because they're working together to find a solution.

_Does Kisshu's planet get saved? _

To answer this question, we have to go about eight years into the future. Ryou, with Pai's help, found a way to save the aliens planet – only he could tell you the specifics, and I don't think the majority of the country would understand if he did, but the general idea is that he made a device that would shift the planets tectonic plates so the gasses released and the oceanic movements changed would, combined, start to heat up the planet, so they can grow crops and start to live properly again. It actually worked, and Pai and Taruto went home. Ryou wouldn't want me to tell you this, but he tested a smaller version of the device in a greenhouse, to try and heat it up. The prototype worked… a little too well - He set the greenhouse on fire….

Keiichiro saved the day with a fire extinguisher...

Anyway, Kisshu was more reluctant to leave Earth, and stayed a little longer. He wanted to bring Ichigo to his world, but she can't leave her home yet.

He visits his world though, and every time he comes back, Ichigo waits for him in the meadow where they danced as part of Kisshu's New Year present to Ichigo.

But before all of that, Keiichiro organised a rented house for Kisshu, Taruto and Pai while they get used to the human world, and try to find a solution to saving their own world.

**

* * *

****That's it for the mini-epilogue. Hoped it helped! And this will actually be the end of the story. Who ever heard of a story with two epilogue's? **


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